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(by Laya Neelakandan, CNBC) – The South Korean government said it is working to return its nationals who were detained in an immigration raid on a Hyundai facility in Georgia last Thursday.
Federal and immigration agents conducted a massive sweep on the plant in Ellabell, Georgia, arresting 475 people as part of a month-long investigation into allegations of unlawful employment practices. A South Korean spokesperson told NBC News that more than 300 of the arrests were South Korean nationals. [The government of Japan, another key U.S. ally, said Tuesday that three Japanese nationals were also among those detained. U.S. officials also detained workers from Guatemala, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Ecuador and Venezuela].
U.S. authorities, who had a search warrant, said the arrested workers were working or living in the country illegally. [Some had allegedly entered the U.S. illegally, and others were accused of overstaying their visas or violating visa waivers (that don’t allow them to work here) by working. ICE said in a statement Friday night that those arrested during the operation were “found to be working illegally, in violation of the terms of their visas and/or statuses.” One green card holder from Mexico was arrested after “being determined to be removable from the U.S. based on multiple criminal convictions,” ICE said].
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s office said Sunday that detainees will be returned to South Korea on a chartered flight.
The South Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it was dispatching officials to the site, conveyed its “concern and regret” and urged the U.S. Embassy in Seoul “to exercise extreme caution to ensure that the legitimate rights and interests of Korean citizens are not unjustly infringed upon.”
“In the course of U.S. law enforcement, the economic activities of our investment firms and the rights and interests of our nationals must not be unjustly infringed upon,” said Lee Jae-woong, a spokesperson for South Korea’s foreign ministry.
When asked for comment on Monday, Hyundai directed CNBC to its Friday statement that said it is “committed to full compliance with all laws and regulations in every market.”
Thursday’s raid, the latest in President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration, marked the Department of Homeland Security’s largest single-site enforcement operation in its history, according to Steven Schrank, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia.
“This operation underscores our commitment to protecting jobs for Georgians and Americans, ensuring a level playing field for businesses that comply with the law, safeguarding the integrity of our economy and protecting workers from exploitation,” Schrank said.
White House border czar Tom Homan told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday that the Trump administration would continue focusing on workplaces for immigration raids.
“We’re going to do more worksite enforcement operations,” he said. “These companies that hire illegal aliens, they undercut their competition that’s paying U.S. citizen salaries.”
The Georgia plant is home to South Korean companies Hyundai and LG Energy Solution, which are building a battery manufacturing plant together. The $7.6 billion Hyundai plant employs more than 1,200 people. The company began building its manufacturing plant in 2022 and started making electric vehicles less than two years later, making the plant one of the largest economic developments in the state.
LG Energy Solution said on Saturday that 47 of its employees were detained, along with an additional 250 people from “equipment partner companies.”
Schrank said the arrested workers were employed by contractors and subcontractors.
In a Friday statement, U.S. Attorney Margaret Heap said more than 400 agents took part in the raid.
“The goal of this operation is to reduce illegal employment and prevent employers from gaining an unfair advantage by hiring unauthorized workers,” Heap said in the statement. “Another goal is to protect unauthorized workers from exploitation.”
In a statement to NBC News on Friday, Hyundai said it was monitoring the situation and that none of the detainees were direct employees of the auto company.
In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote that he is calling on all foreign companies investing in the U.S. to “please respect our Nation’s Immigration Laws.”
“Your Investments are welcome, and we encourage you to LEGALLY bring your very smart people, with great technical talent, to build World Class products, and we will make it quickly and legally possible for you to do so. What we ask in return is that you hire and train American Workers,” he wrote.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Trump also said the raid had no connection to the economic ties between the two countries, saying that the U.S. has “a great relationship” with South Korea.
Hyundai told NBC News Monday morning that business travel to the U.S. remains in place, with some trips subject to internal review.
Compiled from a CNBC report published on Sept. 8, with excerpts from CBS News. Reprinted here for educational purposes only. May not be reproduced on other websites without permission.
Questions
1. a) How many people were arrested after the month-long investigation by Homeland Security and ICE?
b) How many of those arrested are Korean?
2. Those arrested were working and/or living in the U.S. illegally. How did they get here?
3. How did Hyundai respond to the arrests?
4. a) How did the South Korean government respond?
b) What do you think of this response?
5. What were the 3 goals of the investigation, according to U.S. Attorney Margaret Heap?
6. Some news reports assert that the workers brought in had special knowledge or skill that potential American employees did not have. Others report that they were working on the construction site for the battery plant. What do you think? Ask a parent his/her opinion.
7. The battery factory is part of Hyundai’s $12.6 billion investments in Georgia, including the automaker’s just-opened car factory. Why do you think these multibillion dollar companies didn’t bring these 475 workers in legally?
8. E-Verify is a free, online employment eligibility verification system that allows employers to confirm if new hires are authorized to work in the United States. Georgia is one of the states that requires employers to use E-Verify.
Do you think companies should be held responsible for ensuring that all of their employees are in the U.S. legally?
9. According to a Reuters report, South Korea’s Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol said he was made aware that some experts (for Hyundai) may have traveled to the U.S. to assist with a test run of the electric car factory which was set to begin production in October ahead of obtaining the appropriate documentation. “You need to get a visa to do a test run, but it’s very difficult to get an official visa. Time was running out, and I think experts went to the United States,” he said.
President Trump had just met with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung at the White House on Aug. 25. Why do you think Hyundai executives brought the experts to the U.S. without asking President Myung to contact President Trump over the issue (or contact the White House themselves)?
10. Georgia’s Democratic Party condemned the immigration arrests, calling the raid part of “politically-motivated fear tactics designed to terrorize people who work hard for a living, power our economy, and contribute to the communities across Georgia that they have made their homes.” Do you agree? Explain your answer.
Background
From a Sept. 6 Reuters report:
The investigation took place over several months, Steven Schrank, special agent in charge of investigations for Georgia, said during a press briefing.
“This was not an immigration operation where agents went into the premises, rounded up folks and put them on buses,” he said.
Schrank said there was a network of subcontractors on the site. [An Ice spokesman said agents were focused on the construction site for the battery plant].
A Hyundai Motor spokesperson said none of the people detained were employed directly by the automaker.
The company said its chief manufacturing officer for North America, Chris Susock, would “assume governance of the entire megasite in Georgia.”
“We will conduct an investigation to ensure all suppliers and their subcontractors comply with all laws and regulations. Hyundai has zero tolerance for those who don’t follow the law,” it said.
The raid – dubbed “Operation Low Voltage” – included more than 400 law enforcement officers after a months-long investigation.
The White House said on Friday that “any foreign workers brought in for specific projects must enter the United States legally and with proper work authorizations.”
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