Hyundai Motor Company—Hyundai-Kia's US supply chain named to 2026 'Dirty Dozen' dangerous-employers list over child labor, prison labor, and 12 worker deaths
The National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH) named Hyundai-Kia's US supply chain to its 2026 'Dirty Dozen' list on April 24, 2026, the first time the automaker's supply chain has appeared. A companion report from Jobs to Move America and Re-CALL/Injustice documented 12 worker deaths and 854 OSHA citations (70% serious, willful, or repeat) across Hyundai-Kia supplier plants from 2015-September 2025, plus 15 documented cases of illegal child labor since 2020, including a 13-year-old who worked up to 60 hours a week at an Alabama metal-stamping supplier, SMART Alabama -- the subject of a US Department of Labor lawsuit naming Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama as joint employer. A November 13, 2025 Jobs to Move America lawsuit in California state court further alleges Hyundai and Kia used coerced migrant and prison labor in Alabama and Georgia supplier plants while falsely certifying compliance with California's 'high-road' labor standards to win public contracts.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer Protection | -against | contextual | -0.20 |
| Supply Chain Ethics | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Worker Rights | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.485 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (critical ×2) × confidence (0.66)× agency (negligent ×0.5)
Evidence (2 signals)
National COSH names Hyundai-Kia's US supply chain to 2026 'Dirty Dozen' list
Report detailing National COSH's April 24, 2026 designation, drawing on the Re-CALL/Injustice report documenting 12 worker deaths, 854 OSHA citations, and 15 child-labor cases across Hyundai-Kia's US supplier network since 2015.
US Department of Labor sued Hyundai Alabama supplier over 13-year-old child laborer
DOL filed a federal complaint against Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, SMART Alabama, and staffing firm Best Practice Service LLC over a 13-year-old who worked 50-60 hour weeks on an Alabama assembly line from July 2021 to February 2022, alleging willful FLSA child-labor and hot-goods violations.