European Rights Group Files Complaint Against BMW, Mercedes, VW Under German Forced Labor Law
A European human rights advocacy group recently filed a complaint with the German government against BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen alleging the three automakers aren’t meeting German Supply Chain Act due diligence requirements that their supply chains are free from forced labor.
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The European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights said recent reports, including one released by Sheffield Hallam University in December (see 2212060054), show “the entire supply chain of German car manufacturers is highly likely to be exposed to Uyghur forced labor. VW, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are all named in the report in connection with suppliers that are involved in the Uyghur forced labor program,” the ECCHR said.
“Based on this report, ECCHR filed the complaint under the Supply Chain Act,” the advocacy group said.
Under the German Supply Chain Act, which took effect at the beginning of 2023, large German companies must perform regular risk analyses, adopt preventive measures and take remedial action to stop any human rights violations and environmental damage caused by their business practices, the ECCHR said. Companies can face fines of up to two percent of total revenue for violations.
“Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and BMW have a legal responsibility to comply with this obligation regarding the clearly established risks of forced labor connected to their supplier relationships within the Uyghur Region,” the ECCHR said. “However, information on these companies’ due diligence processes indicates that the measures that they are taking are neither appropriate nor effective, considering the scale and severity of the rights violations occurring in the Uyghur Region,” it said.
“All three companies are heavily reliant on the Chinese automotive manufacturing industry, which is deeply implicated in the use of Uyghur forced labor,” the ECCHR said. “Yet, despite clear indications that severe human rights violations are likely happening within this sector of their supply chains, they have failed to take appropriate steps to identify and mitigate these specific risks, based on the available evidence. For example, in all of their documentation describing their human rights due diligence processes, the risk of Uyghur forced labor is not mentioned once.”
BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen “should be taking urgent action to analyze the risk of forced labor within their manufacturing operations -- and disengage from any supply chain relationships they have with companies active in the region,” the group said.
BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen did not immediately comment.