ANROEV Presentation

2024.5.29-5.31

Health & safety of women workers:

  reproductive toxicity issues and

  occupational diseases of children

Today’s presentation topic is about the health and safety of women workers, reproductive toxicity issues, and how occupational diseases impact children. Examples of occupational disease victims. 

Kim Min-joon (18) was born with one kidney. His kidney can only function at 10 percent of normal capacity. He still visits the hospital once a month. 

Park Soo-bin (14) also lacks a kidney. During his infancy, one of his eyes had developmental delay. 

Lee Joon-hyo (23) suffered from "inborn colorectal disease." Just after his first birthday, Lee had surgery. After the surgery, it was difficult to control bowel movements, which caused large and small inconveniences in daily life.

To make a long story short, they were recently recognized as occupational disease after a long wait. 

Here's the problem.

The mothers of these three children all worked at Samsung Semiconductor plants and handled harmful chemicals during pregnancy. Many harmful chemicals handled by mothers are toxic to reproductive health. 

1.   There is a significant amount of government /and scientific data about the harms to the health of female workers /in the electronics industry 

Subsequent government and academic research have revealed increased risks of serious diseases among female workers. These include leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, reproductive issues

2. The government and companies have failed to meet their human rights obligations

"South Korea's Occupational Safety and Health Act does not adequately protect workers' 'right to know'. Samsung withhold details about chemicals, making it tough for sick workers to prove their illnesses are job-related. new laws protect the trade secrets leaving labors in the dark. Many chemicals used aren't properly monitored.

3. Worker’s gender can influence the degree of exposure and worker vulnerability to toxics 

There have been reports of reproductive illnesses in the past. After the struggle with Samsung ended, SHARPS realized it by looking back on the stories. 

“Stories from the Clean Room” conducted in 2016, one of interviewees briefly mentioned that her child was sick. We decided to act on this problem before it was too late. f exposure and worker vulnerability to toxics 

Typically,college-educated men have worked as engineers while high-school-educated women work directly with chemicals as operators. Samsung has provided health and safety information about chemicals to male engineers /but not to female operators. Discrimination, lack of job options, and a wide gender pay gap worsen the situation.

SHARPS has held press conferences, seminars, and discussions with experts such as researchers, lawyers and doctors, activists, as well as labor unions and related organizations. 

SHARPS successfully push for a new amendment called the 'Fetal Injury Act'.

We asked the writer to write about the process of making the issue visible. 

We hope that the victims will not be seen only as victims. The writer captured their lives beyond the pain experienced by their mothers. 

We asked the writer to write about the process of making the issue visible. 

We hope that the victims will not be seen only as victims. The writer captured their lives beyond the pain experienced by their mothers. 

The Challenge

The clean rooms have been automated . But SHARPS still receives calls from women who used to work there. The clean rooms have been automated . But SHARPS still receives consultations from female operators who worked there in the past.SHARPS is about to start another struggle to make a map of danger and disease. The first challenge of SHARPS is to map the dangers and diseases of the past and struggle to make a road without a map. 

Secondly, we want to solidarise with other women workers in the electronics industry who have been fighting for health and safety issues, job security and higher wages through their labour unions. 

Finally, we will look at women's labour rights, participation rights, health rights, care rights, social rights, disability rights, and reproductive rights in a broader sense. 

"Thank you for  listening.