Samsung excuses for illness and death of some workers | Economic news

By KIM TONG-HYUNG, Associated press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Samsung Electronics apologized on Friday for the illnesses and deaths of some of its employees, saying it had failed to create a safe working environment in its electronic chip manufacturing and display factories.

The announcement by the South Korean tech giant comes weeks after the company and a group representing Samsung workers in trouble have accepted the terms of compensation proposed by a mediator and put an end to a stalemate. high profile that has lasted for more than ten years. The company's apology was part of the settlement.

Kinam Kim, president of Samsung's appliance solutions division, said the company had failed to "sufficiently manage the health threats" on its semiconductor and power lines. LCD screens. As detailed by the Associated Press over the past decade, dozens of employees who worked there have had serious illnesses such as leukemia and brain tumors.

"We sincerely apologize to our sick workers and their families," Kim said at a press conference in Seoul, attended by activists and relatives of the workers.

However, while reaching an agreement and vaguely admitting that safety standards are not being met, Samsung has still not fully recognized that its work environment was the direct cause of the disease.

The clash began in 2007 when taxi driver Hwang Sang-gi refused to accept a settlement after the death of his 23-year-old daughter died of leukemia after working for a Samsung factory. Hwang's efforts to clarify the cause of Yu-mi's death and to hold Samsung accountable for work-related issues galvanized a wider movement to demand that businesses and the government report on security breaches in the workplace. chip and display industries, which use huge amounts of chemicals.

"No excuse would be enough given the deception and humiliation experienced by Samsung over the past eleven years, suffering from occupational diseases, losing loved ones," Hwang told a conference Press. "But I take excuses today as a promise of Samsung Electronics," to improve the safety of his workplaces, he said.

According to the settlement, Samsung will compensate various employees of its chip and LCD factories since 1984, including 150 million won ($ 132,000) for leukemia. Compensation also covers miscarriages and congenital diseases of workers' children, such as cancer in the child.

Since 2008, dozens of workers have demanded compensation from the government for workplace safety. Few people have been compensated, mainly after years of legal battles. Half of the remaining applications were rejected and half are still under review.

The families of the victims often exhausted their savings and sold their homes to pay their hospital bills. Some workers become incapacitated and unable to work.

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