Samsung has been called upon internationally, by a number of prominent entities, to stop alleged violations of labor laws, human rights, and other unsavory doings that the company is being accused of. These May Day protests, which kicked off on May 1, include the delivery to Samsung of a number of petitions with a grand total of over 200,000 signatures. Terms of many of these petitions and protests include things like compliance with local labor laws, stopping of alleged threats and actions against workers, and full disclosure and proper disposal of chemicals used in manufacturing on a worldwide scale.
Amsterdam, Hanoi, Hong Kong, London, New York, San Jose, and Seoul are all among the major cities of the world who are represented across a number of actions against Samsung, asking for the company to obey laws surrounding its business practices and to follow ethical business practices, including allowing workers to unionize, something that is reportedly not allowed at many of the manufacturing giant’s factories across the globe. It is worth noting that Samsung is currently engaged in a lawsuit against the South Korean government in order to stop a full disclosure of hazardous materials used in manufacturing, according to a recent report. Disclosure of these materials could potentially increase a number of liabilities for Samsung, including pollution and compensation for workers who have fallen ill on the job and have alleged that the chemicals in the factories may be to blame. Samsung has also reportedly made threats against organizations that have shined a light on the company’s alleged violations of health regulations, labor laws, and human rights law, and those threats are another subject of the actions against Samsung.
This massive worldwide action comes amid Samsung doing quite well after recovering from two major PR crises back to back; first, there was the saga of the Galaxy Note 7, an exploding flagship with faulty design around the battery compartment to blame, and then top exec Lee Jae-yong was involved in a corruption scandal that ended up being at least part of the reason for the South Korean president at the time being impeached.