Steven Schrank, the special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia, told reporters Friday that the majority of those detained were Korean nationals but he didn't know exactly how many. They worked for a variety of different companies at the site, including subcontractors, he said.
..
The president of Georgia's chapter of the AFL-CIO called the raid politically motivated and said ICE has been escalating its presence at workplaces across the state.
..
"This raid is the latest in an ongoing campaign of harassment that has targeted immigrant Georgians as they try to earn an honest living," Yvonne Brooks said in a statement. "Arresting and detaining workers, who are exploited every day and risk their lives every day on the job, creates an atmosphere of fear that terrorizes workers and their families and increases the workload burden on their coworkers."
..
The sweep targeted one of Georgia's largest and most high-profile manufacturing sites, touted by Gov. Brian Kemp and other officials as the biggest economic development project in the state's history. Hyundai Motor Group, South Korea's biggest automaker, began manufacturing electric vehicles a year ago at the $7.6 billion plant, which employs about 1,200 people, and has partnered with LG Energy Solution to build an adjacent battery plant, slated to open next year. The search shut down construction on the battery plant.