hankyoreh

June 23. (Photo by Kim Jung-hyo)

By Kim So-youn

A government research institution has confirmed for the first time that carcinogenic substances including benzene and formaldehyde are present at semiconductor factories.

The Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute announced the results of a detailed study of working environments in semiconductor manufacturing workplaces on Monday. Starting in 2009, the OSHRI measured levels of carcinogens at Samsung, Hynix and Fairchild Korea over three-year period. Cases of leukemia were reported at the Samsung plants.

The investigation found that benzene, which causes leukemia, was a by-product of processes on wafer processing lines and semiconductor assembly lines. In other words, even if benzene is not used directly when manufacturing semiconductors, the decomposition of some substances at high temperatures produces benzene. The concentrations detected, up to 0.00038ppm on processing lines and up to 0.00990ppm on assembly lines, were both lower than the exposure level set by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, which stands at 1ppm.

The investigation also found formaldehyde to be a by-product. The exposure level set for formaldehyde is 0.5ppm; it was detected on processing lines at concentrations of 0.004ppm and assembly lines at 0.015ppm. Ionized radiation was measured at annual doses of up to 0.015 millisieverts on processing and assembly lines. The exposure limit for workers in radioactive environments is 50 mSv per year.

In addition to substances found to cause leukemia, arsenic, which causes lung cancer, was present as part of ion implantation processes on processing lines in quantities of 0.0001-0.061mg/m3, in excess of the exposure limit of 0.01mg/m3. Workers at subcontracting companies are largely responsible for maintenance and repair work related to ion implantation processes. The MOEL has ordered the three companies to take remedial action to improve facilities, including installing ventilation devices; taking measurements of the working environment; conducting medical examinations more often, and creating policies to protect subcontracted workers.

“Given that various carcinogens have been found in the semiconductor manufacturing process, the Korea Workers‘ Compensation & Welfare Service must actively acknowledge industrial risks in the semiconductor industry,” said Lee Jong-ran, a labor attorney at the group Banollim, which seeks to defend the health and human rights of workers in the semiconductor industry. “A court of law has already recognized that even if carcinogen levels are present in levels below the exposure standards, in cases of long-term and continuous exposure work-related illness can be caused.”

The problem of leukemia in semiconductor factories became a social issue in 2007, when workers at Samsung Electronics applied to the KWCWS to have industrial hazards recognized. In June last year, Seoul Administrative Court admitted for the first time that workers who contracted leukemia while working at the company were victims of industrial hazards. Last year, however, an inquiry commissioned by US industrial safety consulting firm Environ reached the opposite conclusion, claiming that there was no scientific causal relationship between semiconductor workplaces and outbreaks of sickness such as leukemia.

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