“Samsung” Telecommunications one of the leading computer chip and smartphone company with about 10,000 workers in its unit. Here is the shocking fact about the company which is not yet revealed till now.

Reports have quoted a worker safety group saying that in Samsung’s display and computer chip factories, workers are exposed to many harmful toxins which lead to occupational diseases including leukemia, lupus, lymphoma and multiple sclerosis and most of them are working in its LCD units. About Seventy-six had died, mostly in their 20s and 30s and about 200 cases of serious illnesses were registered. However, the company kept this as a secret.

Moreover, the workers from South Korea did not get any compensation from the government for occupational diseases is they don’t submit required proofs about the toxins in their workplaces.

Samsung pays a huge amount to the workers who are affected by the diseases to keep them silent about this serious issue.

Here are some of the comments from Samsung workers and their families:

HWANG SANG-GI, father of Hwang Yu-mi, a former Samsung factory worker who died of leukemia at the age of 22 said that “(Samsung) once offered me 1 billion won (Rs 5.7 crore), asking me to stay silent. The idea was to deny her illness was an occupational disease and to leave me without any power to fight back.”

PARK MIN-SOOK (43) a former Samsung chip worker and breast cancer survivor said that “In a situation where people’s lives are at stake, (Samsung) brought uninformed kids from the countryside and acted like money is everything, using them as if they were disposable cups.”

KIM MI-SEON, (36), a former Samsung display worker who lost her sight after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Kim lives in a government-subsidized apartment with her sisters.  She said that “There was never any education (at the factory) about what kind of chemicals could be bad so that we could be more careful.”

Chung Ji-yeon (34), former Samsung worker, daughter of SONG BOK-JA (72), died because of leukemia. Her mother said that “What I find most unfair is that some people get compensated and others don’t. My daughter was diagnosed a little over 10 years (after she left Samsung). Up to 10 years, you get compensated, a little after 10 years, you don’t.”

PARK WON-HEE, (42), a former Samsung chip worker diagnosed with lupus who cannot hold a regular job because of her illness. She is a single mother of a teenage daughter told that “My house is subsidized by the government. My child is young. I asked my sisters and they don’t have money. I feel bad for people who cannot get compensation (from Samsung) but we are in an urgent situation. I asked for it to provide a better life for my child.”

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