Migrant worker in Naju speaks out after forklift abuse

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Migrant worker in Naju speaks out after forklift abuse

Published: 04 Aug. 2025, 00:05

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Choi Kyeong-ho

The author is the head of the Gwangju bureau of the JoongAng Ilbo.

“The manager often swore at me,” said a 31-year-old Sri Lankan worker, identified as A, in a recent phone interview with the JoongAng Ilbo. A was subjected to workplace abuse at a brick factory in Naju, South Jeolla, on Feb. 26, when he was bound with plastic and lifted on a forklift loaded with bricks.

Video footage obtained by human rights groups shows A tied to the forklift while co-workers laughed and filmed the scene on their phones. “The forklift driver caused me great pain,” A recalled. “It was humiliating and a memory I do not want to revisit.”

A Sri Lankan worker is tied to bricks and moved by a forklift at a brick factory in Naju, South Jeolla. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The footage sparked widespread outrage. President Lee Jae Myung said he “could not believe his eyes” and vowed strict punishment, calling the abuse “an intolerable act of violence” and “a clear human rights violation.”

Police and labor authorities quickly launched investigations. Officers booked the forklift driver and others identified in the video the day after it became public. The Ministry of Employment and Labor is also reviewing whether additional abuse of foreign workers occurred, such as harassment or wage delays.

A recently settled with the forklift operator. He said he did so because prolonged investigations would have caused “greater mental distress” but emphasized he had not forgiven the perpetrator.

His employment situation remains uncertain. The Labor Ministry is considering allowing A to transfer his employment zone under the E-9 visa system to cities such as Ulsan. Currently, E-9 visa holders can change workplaces only within designated regions and industries.

The Jeonnam Migrant Workers' Human Rights Network holds a press conference in front of Naju City Hall in Naju, South Jeolla, on July 24, calling for a thorough investigation of the human rights abuse case involving a Sri Lankan migrant worker. [YONHAP]

South Jeolla offered A jobs, but he declined. Having entered Korea last December, he will be required to leave Korea if he fails to secure new employment within 90 days of his transfer request, a period that began Monday.

Human rights groups argue that the situation exposes systemic flaws. They say that forcing a worker to risk deportation after leaving a job due to harassment represents another form of abuse, and that Korea’s labor system for foreign workers needs urgent reform.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.