U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Sept. 4 detained 475 workers at the under-construction Hyundai-LG battery plant in Ellabell, Ga., including 317 South Koreans, triggering an outcry in Seoul and prompting many of the detained workers to reject returning to the United States, according to South Korean officials and media reports.
A diary kept secretly by one detainee and obtained by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency described cramped, cold and unsanitary conditions at an ICE facility and alleged that workers were held for days with little explanation of their detention. The account, along with statements from lawyers and diplomats, heightened scrutiny of how legal foreign workers are handled during immigration enforcement actions and has strained relations between the two countries.
The detentions left firms and lawmakers in South Korea questioning whether to send technical teams needed to complete complex U.S. projects. Of the 475 detained, 330 people — 316 South Koreans and 14 other foreign nationals — elected to return to Seoul, where many were greeted by supporters, officials said. Only one South Korean worker chose to remain in the United States. "Nobody is going to stay and work when it's like this," Jang Young-seol, an engineer for an LG Energy Solution subcontractor, told Reuters.
Immigration lawyer Charles Kuck, who represents seven of the detained Koreans, said his clients had entered and were working in the United States legally. A leaked ICE document reported by The Guardian indicated that at least one detainee held a valid visa. The detained workers were described in some reports as being instructed to sign "voluntary departure" forms that characterized them as being in the United States illegally.
The diary obtained by Yonhap detailed men in hard hats and safety shoes being rounded up at around 10 a.m., their wrists bound with cable ties, and their identification taken. It said detainees were initially placed into temporary cells designed for up to 72 people, where they endured cold temperatures, moldy mattresses and a lack of clocks. The diary and South Korean press accounts said some detainees were shackled at waist, hands and ankles and that sanitary and privacy conditions were poor.
Cho Young-hee, a 44-year-old engineer identified by The Wall Street Journal, said he was in the United States on a B-1 visa, was assigned to a two-person room in the detention facility and given a prison uniform. Cho told the Journal he was unsure why he had been detained and said the agents initially behaved aggressively before their demeanor changed. The diary described an interview in which ICE agents examined documents and joked about North Korea’s leader after verifying detainees were from South Korea.
South Korean consular officials visited detainees on Sept. 7 and, according to reports, urged them to return home, warning that disputes could lead to lengthy detentions. Officials in Seoul and opposition lawmakers criticized the U.S. handling of the incident and demanded explanations. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau expressed regret in a meeting with South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo, the U.S. State Department said.
The timing of the raid is likely to complicate efforts to attract and retain foreign investment. South Korea had recently pledged $350 billion in direct investment in the United States as part of a trade and economic understanding between the countries. The joint Hyundai-LG battery plant project is expected to create thousands of American jobs, but company officials have said startup will be delayed by at least two to three months because of the detentions.
U.S. President Donald Trump initially defended ICE’s actions, saying agents "were doing right because they were here illegally," and urged foreign companies to bring employees legally. In subsequent statements, Trump sought to allay concerns by saying he wanted foreign companies to bring experts to the United States to train American workers and that he did not want to "frighten off or disincentivize investment into America." White House and administration officials said they were in talks with South Korean counterparts about possible new visa arrangements to reduce friction.
South Korean business leaders and government officials have warned that more stringent and unpredictable U.S. immigration enforcement is creating obstacles for companies that rely on short-term transfers of technical staff. Companies involved in advanced manufacturing projects, including semiconductors, batteries and other complex supply chains, depend on specialists who can transfer skills and train domestic workers during start-up phases.
The detentions have prompted urgent diplomatic engagement. Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik told reporters the episode reflected a "new normal" in dealing with the United States and that ongoing negotiations would require continued deal-making. South Korean lawmakers have demanded clearer protections for their nationals working legally in the United States and called for better coordination between diplomatic missions and U.S. immigration authorities.
Legal advocates say the episode underscores tension between hardline immigration enforcement and economic goals aimed at bringing manufacturing and investment to the United States. Immigration attorneys representing the workers said some of their clients had visas authorizing short-term business travel and questioned why they were presented with paperwork that described them as unlawfully present.
As diplomatic talks continue, some South Korean firms are reassessing U.S. investments and the logistics of sending technical teams. Company executives and analysts say the uncertainty could slow the pace of foreign-led projects that the Biden and Trump administrations alike have promoted as central to reviving domestic manufacturing.
U.S. and South Korean officials said they would continue to work to resolve individual cases and to prevent similar incidents. The detained workers who returned to Seoul have described a mix of relief and reluctance, with many saying they would think twice before accepting U.S. assignments again. The incident has prompted calls in both countries for clearer protocols to ensure that enforcement actions do not sweep up legally present foreign workers engaged in authorized business activities.
Near-term outcomes include potential delays to the Hyundai-LG plant timeline and further diplomatic negotiations over visa categories and consular coordination. Longer-term outcomes will likely depend on whether the United States adopts formal changes to visa processes or enforcement protocols that reassure allied governments and multinational companies that their personnel can work in the United States without facing similar treatment.