SK On US Subsidiary Fined 100 Million KRW for Safety Violations

Last October Georgia Factory Fire
SK Battery America "Employee Safety Efforts"

SK On's U.S. subsidiary, SK Battery America (SKBA), was fined approximately 100 million KRW by the U.S. Department of Labor for safety violations related to a battery fire at its Georgia plant last year.

On the 8th (local time), the U.S. Department of Labor stated, "Following an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) investigation, five serious safety violations were found related to the lithium battery fire at SK Battery America's Georgia plant in October last year, which potentially caused permanent respiratory damage to workers," and added, "a fine of $77,200 (approximately 104.6 million KRW) was imposed."

OSHA noted that after the fire in October last year, SK Battery "did not properly train employees on how to protect themselves from toxic air that injured several workers." It further stated, "The company failed to establish a complete emergency response plan, exposing workers to hazardous substances such as hydrofluoric acid generated during lithium battery fires," and "did not have equipment to treat employees exposed to these hazards."

SK On's U.S. subsidiary SK Battery America (SKBA)
Photo by SK On

This is the second time the U.S. Department of Labor has fined SK Battery America. In January, OSHA imposed a fine of $75,000 (approximately 101.5 million KRW) for six serious safety violations, including exposing battery plant employees to unsafe levels of nickel and other metals.

Joshua Turner, OSHA Atlanta Area Director, said on the day, "Within less than a year, SK Battery America has failed to comply with federal standards designed to ensure all workers can complete their work safely."

SK Battery America issued a statement on the same day, saying, "We are diligently working to assess and address employee safety issues," and "We have comprehensive safety protocols and training programs in place." It added, "We are implementing worker safety rules and training programs to create a safe working environment," and "We are carefully reviewing the findings and will respond appropriately according to procedures."