Labor groups call for targeted inspections of all Ulsan workplaces handling lead

【Financial News, Ulsan = Reporter Choi Soo-sang】  The Ulsan Campaign Headquarters for a World Without Serious Accidents held a news conference in front of the Ulsan branch office of the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 11th and called for targeted inspections of all workplaces in the Ulsan area that handle or emit lead.
They stressed that reports had emerged that subcontracted workers at another Ulsan company had also received the injections after it came to light that DN Automotive, which makes car batteries, had workers undergo chelation injections to remove heavy metals such as lead from their bodies. They said targeted inspections were needed not only at 14 workplaces in the same battery manufacturing sector as DN Automotive, but also at 19 workplaces subject to surveys of lead handling or emissions, including metal smelting businesses.
They said, “These workplaces span a range of industries, from metal smelting and processing to electrical equipment manufacturing, including batteries; chemicals and chemical products manufacturing, such as paint and plastic products; automobile manufacturing; and the storage of hazardous materials,” explaining, “That is why all workplaces handling lead need to be inspected.”
They also called on the Ministry of Employment and Labor to “thoroughly investigate and severely punish employers who made workers undergo chelation injections” and to “improve the system so that special health examinations can lead to better working conditions.”
Their position is that making workers undergo chelation injections that forcibly remove lead from their bodies, without even providing them with a detailed explanation, ahead of special health examinations that measure blood lead levels to protect the health of workers handling lead is an obvious criminal act that undermines the very foundation of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
Meanwhile, the Ulsan Campaign Headquarters for a World Without Serious Accidents is made up of 24 local organizations, including civil society groups, labor organizations, political parties and others.


[email protected] Choi Soo-sang Reporter