Samsung makes billions of dollars off of its smartphones and other electronics. But, while the company prospers, workers suffer.
Workers are regularly exposed to dangerous chemicals without protective gear or adequate training, and some are developing serious illnesses.
Since 2007, more than 100 Samsung factory workers have died due to work-related diseases and hundreds have fallen ill, according to SHARPS, an occupational health advocacy group in South Korea.
Courts in Korea have sided with one victim, ruling her leukemia was caused by dangerous chemicals she was exposed to at work. Seven years after her death, Samsung finally issued an apology to workers in 2014.
In July 2015, Samsung finally agreed to pay victims $85.8 million in compensation—in line with the recommendations of a mediation committee set up to negotiate between workers and the company. However, so far, Samsung has ignored the core recommendation of this committee: to fund an independent non-profit foundation that will determine how to fairly distribute compensation to workers for their diseases and how to develop an effective strategy for assessing and incorporating safer chemicals into production, in order to prevent future diseases.
Without a plan to monitor and remove hazardous chemicals from Samsung factories, young workers continue to risk their lives every day, just by doing their jobs. Victims have engaged in a sit-in in front of Samsung headquarters in order to get the electronics giant to protect workers from toxins and work with the Mediation Committee. Adding to the urgency, recent investigations of Samsung factories worldwide by International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) have also found widespread abusive labor conditions.
Workers are regularly exposed to dangerous chemicals without protective gear or adequate training, and some are developing serious illnesses. Take action now to protect smartphone workers.
Trader Joe's needs to answer for its poor labor and climate practices and lack of transparency. Join us in holding them accountable!
Join Green America and our partners in calling on the world’s ten biggest chocolate companies, including Hershey, Godiva, Mars, and Nestle, to finally put an end to child labor in cocoa and an end to deforestation!
Walmart refrigeration is leaking harmful climate pollutants - tell them to Cool It. We are urging Walmart to phase out harmful HFCs by 2030, reduce its refrigerant leaks, and commit to responsible disposal.
This short documentary, Who Pays the Price? The Human Cost of Electronics, reveals the worker health and safety abuses and hazards of the electronics industry in China, profiling workers poisoned by chemicals and their struggle for compensation.…
Through the purchases you make, and those you choose to avoid, you have the power to create an economy where child labor and sweatshops cease to exist. And your voice, together with the voices of others, can help encourage companies here and…
While Samsung is quick to address issues within its supply chain to ensure the safety of its consumers, it has dragged its feet to take steps to ensure the safety of its …
©2017-2021 Green America
Green America's website is sponsored by Green America members and 
