Former Hyundai megasite workers awarded $43,000 in wage lawsuit settlement

BRYAN COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - Two former Hyundai megasite construction workers have been awarded tens of thousands of dollars after filing a lawsuit against subcontractors saying they were not paid money they were owed.

Migrant workers Jonathon Rincon and Martin Garcia will be paid a collective $43,000 by a Hyundai subcontractor, which includes unpaid wages, damages, and attorney’s fees.

Federal lawsuit filed against multiple subcontractors

Rincon and Garcia filed a federal lawsuit against Hyundai subcontractor Sys-Con in August 2024, saying they were never paid raises that they were owed and were never given overtime pay despite regularly working over 40 hours a week.

H&B USA and PPE Trading Co, subcontractors of Sys-Con, were also ultimately named in the lawsuit.

Lawyers for the migrant workers and for the subcontractors came to a settlement agreement in December of last year, but a federal judge denied the agreement in July. The settlement agreement was refiled and approved by the judge this month. PPE Trading Co. will pay Rincon and Garcia.

Worker describes harsh treatment and abuse

Rincon, who came to the United States from Colombia for work, described the mistreatment he endured while working on the megasite.

READ: Safety issues, injuries at Hyundai megasite concern workers, advocates

“It was really hard. They treated us very differently. They talked to us like we were in the Army. They were calling us names, oftentimes ‘undocumented’ and they made us work really hard,” Rincon said.

Rincon also alleged physical abuse by supervisors during his time at the site.

“It was really hard for us, but we need to work so sometimes we have to take that and keep working and it got to the point where one time, one of the Korean supervisors raised his hand on me and became physical, and after that, they were trying to find a way to get rid of me and they finally did,” Rincon said.

Part of broader WTOC investigation into safety and exploitation

WTOC Investigates’ interview with Rincon was part of our larger investigation into conditions at the Hyundai megasite and allegations migrant workers were being exploited.

Bryan County and OSHA records showed workplace injuries including a leg being run over by a forklift, a conveyor belt crush, and a fatal fall. OSHA records also documented language barriers that prevented proper safety training, with one subcontractor noting they “do not have a copy of our safety policy in Spanish.”

Workers’ rights advocate Darwin Bonilla, who helped connect Rincon with legal assistance, called the Hyundai site problematic.

“This is probably the biggest job site that I’ve found where that many workers are being mistreated and exploited,” Bonilla said.

ICE raid follows investigation

READ: Illegal labor, exploitation of workers at center of Hyundai megasite raid

Since the issue was originally exposed, ICE raided the site in what Homeland Security Investigations called its largest single-site enforcement operation ever. No charges have been filed, but a spokesperson for the agency said after the raid that labor trafficking charges are not off the table.