Alicia Meehan, Campus Carrier reporter
On Sept. 4, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided Hyundai’s lithium-ion battery factory in Bryan County, Georgia to arrest undocumented workers thought to be at the site. ICE detained around 475 employees. More than 300 of the detained employees were South Korean. Those arrested were cuffed by both the wrists and ankles and lined up outside the factory.
Associate Professor of International Affairs Vincent Gawronski said that this raid was the largest in ICE’s history, with the number of arrests in the hundreds.
Hyundai shared in a statement that the workers detained by ICE were not directly employed by the company.
“Hyundai is committed to full compliance with all laws and regulations in every market where we operate,” Hyundai spokesperson Ira Gabriel said. “This includes employment verification requirements and immigration laws. We expect the same commitment from all our partners, suppliers, contractors and subcontractors.”
According to the Guardian, a leaked document shows that at least one of those detained was working in the U.S. on a valid work visa. This contradicts a previous statement from the agency that 100% of employees detained were working under violated visas or without proper documentation. ICE declined to comment on the legality of the raid.
A statement made by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also denies the Guardians reporting. According to a DHS spokesperson, the individual in question admitted to working without authorization and accepted “voluntary departure” when offered.
Many attorneys are also saying that several workers with valid visas were detained in the raid and are aiming to help represent these workers with legal status. Neither officials from the U.S. nor South Korea have released the visa status of the detained.
“You will need to hire workers, whether they’re high or low skilled, and one way of protecting yourself if you are a company is then you contract with another company to do the work” Gawronski said. “So, the subcontractor might be engaging in hiring practices where they’re not checking immigration status of their workers.”
Gawronski said that there are varying reasons someone might come to the U.S. While those fleeing war or disaster in their home country can enter with refugee status, emigrants seeking a better economy cannot.
“We’re all the product of immigration,” Gawronski said. “Seeking a better life can’t be a reason for getting refugee status, but you can’t blame them.”
According to NBC News, President Donald Trump had ordered that the process of sending the detained to their country of origin be halted while Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Foreign Minister of South Korea Cho Hyun on Sept. 10. Trump discussed whether the detained workers should stay in the U.S. to continue their work in the battery plant.
“Hyundai made the argument that they were employing South Koreans because they were highly trained, and that it would take two to three years of training to replace them,” Gawronski said.
Gawronski shared an insight from a New Yorks Times article which explained that other countries benefit as the U.S. deports skilled immigrants back to their countries of origin. The article focuses on Central American countries and immigrants.
“The problem with these countries is in the best and the brightest leave, it’s called brain drain,” Gawronski said. “Because many of the Central Americans have been learning how to speak English very well and have some skills, their home countries could actually benefit from their return.”
The Hyundai plant is meant to specialize in producing a specific type of electric battery. The South Korean engineers who were employed at the plant are highly skilled and specialize in making lithium-ion batteries.
The detained employees were sent on a charter to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport after being released from the Folkston ICE Processing Center in Georgia on Thursday. The South Korean government sent a plane which awaited their arrival in Atlanta’s airport. The plant is shut down temporarily.
A plant in Bartow County also manufactures the same lithium-ion battery and it continues operations. This factory is within 40 minutes of Berry.