A salt-farm owner in Yeonggwang, South Jeolla Province, has been sentenced to four years and six months in prison for exploiting and abusing three disabled workers. The Gwangju District Court found that the 61-year-old made them work up to 17 hours a day, withheld about 300 million won in wages, and used violence, restraint and confinement between July 2021 and June this year.
One victim was reportedly transferred to a boat owner before returning to the salt farm, while the workers’ isolation, hunger and lack of independent means made escape difficult. Two accomplices received prison terms of 10 months, one suspended for two years, and an associate who concealed evidence received a suspended six-month sentence.