Alcatel
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Budget mobile phone brand made and sold by China's TCL.
Alcatel's supply chain was linked to forced labour in 2022, and there's no proof it pays more than the legal minimum, which in China is below a living wage.
Better-graded phones
Graded higher than Alcatel, selling the same kinds of things. Second-hand first.
No phones brand selling new goods is Good yet. This is the strongest so far. Second-hand and refurbished goods create no new factory work, so they're Good by rule and come first.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 0 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 4 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, a hidden, unaudited supply chain in high-risk countries, forced or child labour and untraced high-risk mined materials. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record: the most serious problem on its record (forced labour link, last recorded in 2022) was a link through a supplier, not a finding against the company itself.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 0 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsMost of its products are made in countries such as China and India, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Not met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: Traces its cobalt, gold and other conflict minerals to the mine
Red flags 4
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Hidden supply chain, mostly in countries with poor worker rights
- Red flag: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain
- Red flag: Relies on high-risk mined materials it can't traceShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 3 red flags that set it.
- Red flag: Fails its category's raw-material check (means Lacks transparency)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
From press and retailer reports; Alcatel doesn't say where its products are made. The rest is shown as where electronics are usually made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| India | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| VietnamUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| TaiwanUsual for the industry | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| MalaysiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| South KoreaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Close to a living wage | Low |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: cobalt, tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold mining carry child and forced labour risk (DR Congo, Indonesia), and assembly overtime is widespread.
- Relies on metals such as cobalt, gold and tin from artisanal mines where miners, including children, face toxic dust, mercury exposure and deadly tunnel collapses. It hasn't shown any steps to trace these materials to the mine, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does.
Research notes Alcatel phones are made by TCL, which has made phones at its own plant in Huizhou, China; Alcatel phones for India are assembled by Dixon Technologies' Padget Electronics for licensee NxtCell. TCL gives no production shares, publishes no supplier list and its phone business is not in a recent industry rating. A 2025 investigation linked a TCL-owned air conditioner factory, not its phone plants, to Uyghur labour transfers. Alcatel has largely left Australian shops since 2021.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report | Not listed | Neither Alcatel nor TCL was graded in Baptist World Aid's 2016 Electronics Industry Report, the last edition of the series. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Problem found | TCL Corporation's page records the 2025 Uyghur labour transfer investigation at a TCL air conditioner factory and a 2007 SACOM electronics report; nothing concerns Alcatel phones. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Unclear | No modern slavery statement covering Alcatel phones was found on the Australian register. View |
Confirmed issues 1
Only confirmed problems are listed, and old ones drop off after 10 to 15 years. A problem the company has fully put right no longer counts against it, and nor does one it finds and is fixing itself. How problems are counted
| Last recorded | What happened | Made amends? |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Link through a supplierA joint investigation by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, The New York Times and Der Spiegel found Uyghur workers sent under China's state labour transfer programme at a TCL-owned air conditioner factory; it did not involve TCL's phone plants (TBIJ, 2025). Source · search the archive | Not knownTCL did not respond to several requests for comment from the reporters. |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- TCL Corporation (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre) · search the archive · Records Uyghur labour investigation and 2007 SACOM report for TCL; no Alcatel phone items
- What's Happened To The Alcatel Smartphone? (ChannelNews, 2022) · search the archive · TCL makes Alcatel phones under licence; brand largely left Australian carriers and retailers after 2021
- Alcatel re-enters Indian smartphone market, bets on Make in India (Outlook Business, 2025) · search the archive · NxtCell holds Alcatel rights in India from TCL; phones made by Dixon's Padget Electronics; Nokia owns the brand
- TCL Mobile expands Huizhou production (Evertiq, 2013) · search the archive · TCL Mobile makes TCL and Alcatel OneTouch phones at its Huizhou, China plant
- China's economy runs on Uyghur forced labour (TBIJ, May 2025) · search the archive · Transferred Uyghur worker filmed at a TCL air conditioner factory from 2022; TCL did not respond to requests for comment
- Alcatel launches new phones (PhoneArena, 2025) · search the archive · TCL designs, makes and distributes Alcatel phones under a Nokia licence
- Alcatel goes direct with an Amazon storefront for Aussies (EFTM, 2020) · search the archive · Alcatel phones sold online in Australia through an Amazon storefront
Company details
- Headquarters
- China
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Alcatel ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/alcatel, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Alcatel.