{
  "id": 13897117,
  "title": "Lee orders stern response to alleged abuse of workers at car battery plant",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/lee-orders-stern-response-to-alleged-abuse-of-workers-at-car-battery-13897117",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-12T07:22:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/business/companies/20261012/lee-orders-stern-response-to-alleged-abuse-of-workers-at-car-battery-plant"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "President Lee Jae Myung has ordered authorities to take a firm stance against allegations that car battery manufacturer DN Automotive duped its workers into receiving injections to reduce lead levels in its production line, according to his spokesperson Kang Yu-jung. DN Automotive allegedly tricked workers at their plant in Ulsan by disguising the shots as vitamin injections ahead of medical exams. President Lee was informed of the labor ministry's decision to refer the company to the police for investigation and strongly criticized the government for approving a work environment assessment despite finding five times the allowed level of lead in the production process. Lee deemed it an unacceptable and grave violation of human rights for a company responsible for workers' lives and health to deceive employees with injections hiding potential side effects.",
  "summary": "President Lee Jae Myung ordered the authorities Monday to respond sternly to allegations that a car battery manufacturer duped its workers into getting shots to discharge heavy metals from their bodies in order to cover up dangerous levels of lead in its production line, his spokesperson said. According to a news report, DN Automotive, a major local car battery manufacturer, tricked workers at…",
  "key_points": [
    "President Lee Jae Myung orders stern response to alleged worker abuse at DN Automotive.",
    "Workers injected with lead-reducing substances disguised as vitamin injections.",
    "Government referred company to police after lead levels exceeded safety limits."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The presidential directive signals a shift toward stricter oversight of industrial safety standards after allegations revealed a potential failure in government assessments of hazardous production environments.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "Lee orders stern response to alleged abuse of workers at car battery plant",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/lee-orders-stern-response-to-alleged-abuse-of-workers-at-car-battery",
        "published": "2026-10-12T06:43:59.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Lee orders stern response to alleged abuse of workers at car battery plant",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/lee-orders-stern-response-to-alleged-abuse-of-workers-at-car-battery-13900714",
        "published": "2026-10-12T07:42:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}