Senate report cites VW, BMW, JLR for potential forced labor violations
By Aaron Nicodemus2024-05-20T19:16:00
A U.S. Senate report found three European automakers—Volkswagen, BMW, and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR)—sold cars in the United States with parts sourced from a supplier suspected of using forced labor from China’s Xinjiang region.
The report, released Monday, revealed major oversight gaps by the three automakers regarding forced labor in their supply chains. Its findings included “two companies that shipped cars or parts to the United States this year that were made with parts from a banned Chinese supplier,” according to a press release from Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and author of the report.
“Automakers are sticking their heads in the sand and then swearing they can’t find any forced labor in their supply chains,” Wyden said in the release. “… I’m calling on Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to take a number of specific steps to supercharge enforcement and crack down on companies that fuel the shameful use of forced labor in China.”