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Hyundai Subsidiary SMART Is in Hot Waters After Child Labor Accusations

State labor regulators opened an inquiry on the metal stamping factory called SMART from Luverne, Alabama, after a news report released by Reuters claims to have found children as young as 12 being put to work.
Hyundai Factory in Alabama 7 photos
Photo: Hyundai Motors Alabama Website
Hyundai Factory in AlabamaHyundai Factory in AlabamaHyundai Factory in AlabamaHyundai Factory in AlabamaHyundai Factory in AlabamaHyundai Factory in Alabama
This report is devastating not just for the Alabama-based company, but for Hyundai as well because the metal stamping factory is a part supplier for the Korean manufacturer, and their flagship assembly plant on U.S. soil in Montgomery.

The publication says it found out about the underage worker following the disappearance of a young girl in Alabama. The police helped find the girl and later informed Reuters that the girl and her two siblings had worked at SMART earlier this year. The news outlet reports that the girl and her brother were also not attending school, but SMART vehemently denies the conscious employment of minors.

After this shocking discovery, the Alabama Department of Labor is now coordinating with the U.S. Labor Department to investigate this matter.

Tara Hutchison, the state spokesperson, affirmed that in Alabama the law explicitly prohibits minors younger than 16 from working in a manufacturing environment. She went on to explain that regardless of who was paying the minors, their presence on the premises of SMART is alone enough to establish employment. The factory keeps denying the allegations, claiming they rely of temporary employment agencies and trying to shift the blame away from them.

Hyundai issued a statement saying that their policies are completely against any illegal employment practices and those policies require complete compliance with any laws, be they local, state or federal.

However, Reuters uncovered through a series of interviews with former employees and labor recruiters that a larger number of minors found employment at the metal stamping factory, with some of them forgoing school in order to work longer shifts. This is alarming as the Alabama factory has a documented history of health and safety violations, including amputation hazards. This shocking revelation should throw a lot of shade in Hyundai’s direction and their business practices, especially considering they are one of the most profitable carmakers in the world.

Luckily, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, with the three kids being enrolled and going back to attend the next school term.
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About the author: Bogdan Bebeselea
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As a kid, Bogdan grew up handing his dad the tools needed to work on his old Citroen and asking one too many questions about everything happening inside the engine bay. Naturally, this upbringing led Bogdan to become an engineer, but thanks to Top Gear, The Fast and the Furious series, and racing video games, a passion for automotive entertainment was ignited.
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