According to the American news outlet, administrative claims on behalf of the workers, a mandatory step before a federal lawsuit can be filed against the government, have begun to be submitted to nine federal agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Labor (DOL) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The move comes about a year after U.S. immigration authorities carried out a massive crackdown at the construction site of a battery plant being built in Georgia through a joint venture between Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution in September last year.
A total of 475 people, most of them South Koreans, were arrested by heavily armed ICE officials at the scene, handcuffed and shackled, and taken to a detention facility without a proper explanation. The workers, however, said they held valid visa status, contrary to U.S. immigration authorities' claims that they had entered the country illegally or under a visa waiver program that does not permit employment.
In the administrative claims, they said they were unlawfully detained for about a week at an overcrowded facility with poor living conditions, which caused emotional distress, humiliation and psychological trauma. They are also seeking compensation for confiscated personal belongings, lost wages and psychological distress.
Their lawyer told CNN that the purpose of the legal action is to have the U.S. government acknowledge what he described as an "enormous and unjust mistake" and apologize. The amount of damages being sought was not disclosed.
AJP Takeaways
- About 300 South Korean workers detained in a September 2025 Georgia immigration raid have begun legal action against the U.S. government.
- The workers are filing administrative claims with nine federal agencies, alleging unlawful detention and seeking compensation for lost wages, belongings and psychological distress.
- The claims stem from the Sept. 4, 2025 raid, in which 475 people were detained at a battery plant construction site linked to Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.