In September 2025, several media outlets reported that almost 500 migrant workers, mostly from South Korea, were detained by ICE officials at the construction site of an electric vehicle manufacturing plant co-owned by Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution in Georgia.
US officials call the raid the ‘largest-ever’ Homeland Security enforcement operation at a single location.
Reporting by The New York Times highlights that South Korean companies have invested “hundreds of billions” of dollars in the USA in recent years, drawn partly by US government policies incentivising EV and semiconductor manufacturing.
The New York Times and The Guardian also highlight allegations of labour rights abuses at the plant, including unsafe working conditions and three worker deaths.
Many of the detained workers were employed by subcontractors, although 47 of the workers were LG Energy Solution employees helping to oversee the plant’s construction. While most of the workers were undocumented, some US citizens and lawful permanent residents were also detained.
South Korean government officials have expressed alarm over the raid, and have secured the release of the Korean workers, who will be returned to South Korea.
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