(April 15): A worker-rights group said it found evidence of labour violations at BYD Co’s new plant in Hungary, where the Chinese electric-vehicle maker plans to start mass-producing cars this quarter.
China Labor Watch, a New York-based non-profit organisation, said its investigation discovered practices amounting to debt bondage, illegal visa use and gruelling working hours affecting some Chinese migrant workers hired by subcontractors and recruiters, according to a report published on the organisation’s website on Tuesday.
BYD said in a statement that it prioritises worker rights, and that the company and its vendors — including contractors and labour providers — strictly comply with requirements. The carmaker is committed to making sure its activities in Hungary are done so "responsibly, transparently, and in alignment with our global principles", it said.
The report comes as BYD accelerates its global ambitions with the facility, located in the southern Hungarian city of Szeged, which is its first major carmaking plant in the European Union. The Shenzhen-based automaker is aggressively pivoting towards international markets, targeting sales outside China to increase more than 40% to 1.5 million units this year.
China Labor Watch said it conducted field investigations, engaging with 50 workers, in October and November after receiving a complaint from a whistle-blower at BYD’s Hungarian plant.
In Szeged, China Labor Watch said it found evidence of employment in a multi-layered system of intermediaries that shifts financial risk onto the labourers. Employees also described seven-day working weeks and shifts exceeding legal limits and overtime caps. Workers were reportedly instructed during pre-departure training to lie to inspectors about working hours.
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The Hungarian Labor Protection Authority didn’t immediately respond to a request for comments. China Labor Watch has been investigating labour conditions for two decades with a focus on labour rights within China and across Chinese overseas investment projects.
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