Incheon, South Korea — More than 300 South Korean workers returned home Friday after spending days in U.S. immigration detention, following a large-scale raid at a Georgia battery factory tied to Hyundai and LG Energy Solution.
A total of 316 South Korean workers returned, along with 14 foreign nationals, according to TV footage. They arrived at Incheon International Airport at 3:23 p.m. local time (0623 GMT) aboard a chartered Korean Air Boeing 747-8i, which had departed from Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport about 15 hours earlier.
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The arrival came about a week after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided the construction site of an electric vehicle battery plant run by a Hyundai–LG joint venture on Sept. 4. In total, 475 individuals were detained, including more than 300 South Koreans who had since been held at a detention center in Folkston, Georgia.
At the airport, families embraced their loved ones in emotional scenes, while crowds shouted “Welcome back!” One returning worker responded, “I’m back! I’m free!” Senior officials, including presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik, greeted the group with applause.
Public anger has mounted in South Korea after U.S. authorities released video showing Korean workers shackled in chains around their hands, ankles, and waists. Seoul’s Foreign Ministry urged media to blur workers’ faces, citing privacy concerns.
Some of the returnees described the shock of the raid and the harsh conditions of detention, including cramped rooms with toilets inside. One anonymous worker said it was “hardest to share a room with another detainee with the toilet right next to where we ate and slept.”
The South Korean government said it had reached an agreement with Washington for their release, though U.S. President Donald Trump briefly halted their departure to consider whether some workers should remain to continue training American staff. Ultimately, only one worker chose to stay in the U.S. due to family ties.
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, speaking at a press conference Thursday to mark his first 100 days in office, voiced concern about the incident’s impact on business ties.
“As it stands, our companies will inevitably be very hesitant about direct U.S. investment,” Lee said.
South Korea has long urged Washington to improve visa options for skilled Korean workers, noting that most detained had entered on short-term visitor visas, visa waivers, or permits that did not allow employment. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, who traveled to Washington to negotiate their release, said the two countries agreed to set up a working group to discuss new visa categories and quotas.
Despite the raid, LG Energy Solution CEO Kim Dong Myung said any disruption to the Georgia battery plant project would be “within a level we can manage.”
The raid has added strain to U.S.-South Korea economic ties, coming just weeks after a summit between Trump and Lee, and following Seoul’s announcement of a $350 billion U.S. investment plan in exchange for reduced tariffs.
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