Amazon Kindle & Echo
Harm on record. Has recent confirmed harm to workers that it hasn't put right.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 7 sources
Amazon's own electronics: Kindle, Echo speakers, Fire tablets and Fire TV.
In 2022, the Foxconn plant in China that makes Echo and Kindle devices ran illegal overtime, with no safety training and interns without contracts.
Also worth knowing
There's no public record of Amazon Kindle & Echo putting this right.
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Why it's graded Harm on record
- Not met: Meets 0 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 5 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, clear breaches of labour conditions, unaudited production in high-risk countries, forced or child labour and a problem with pay, rights or safety with no fix shown. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- Holds the grade back: It's Harm on record because of a serious confirmed problem from the last 5 years with no public record of it being put right: unsafe conditions, last recorded in 2022.
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 rightsA confirmed problem counts against it: labour rights breach, last recorded in 2019
- 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 5
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Clear breaches of labour conditions
- Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
- Red flag: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain
- Red flag: A confirmed problem with pay, rights or safety not shown to be put rightShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 4 red flags that set it.
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; Amazon Kindle & Echo 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.
- Modern slavery statement
- Publishes its mineral smelter list and uses independently audited smelters (RMAP) for tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold
- It publishes its smelters or uses some recycled or responsibly mined metals, but can't yet trace its cobalt and gold to the mine.
Research notes Kindle and Echo devices are assembled by contract manufacturers, including Foxconn in Hengyang, China, with Fire TV sticks also made by a Foxconn unit in Chennai, India; Amazon does not disclose shares by country. Amazon is an RBA member, audits own-brand suppliers, reimburses recruitment fees when found and publishes a 3TG smelter list, but its supplier list does not separate device factories, it reports no cobalt tracing and has no living wage commitment. It scored 27/100 in KnowTheChain's 2025 ICT benchmark.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| KnowTheChain | Listed | Parent Amazon scored 27/100 and ranked 10th of 45 in the 2025 KnowTheChain ICT benchmark, weakest on purchasing practices and workers' rights. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | Amazon files a group modern slavery statement covering its Australian entities (statement for calendar year 2025, published 2026). View |
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | Amazon's group modern slavery statement is also published under the UK Modern Slavery Act. View |
| Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report | Listed | Amazon Kindle was in the D tier, non-responsive, in the 2016 Electronics Industry Report, the last edition (series ended). Amazon's 13/100 in the 2024 Ethical Fashion Report covers clothing only; its ethical.org.au page shows no 2026 score. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Problem found | Records a 2022 Tech Transparency Project analysis linking suppliers of Amazon devices to Uyghur labour transfers. View |
Confirmed issues 3
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 | A 2022 China Labor Watch investigation of the same Foxconn Hengyang plant found overtime far above legal limits, dispatch workers at 34% of staff, interns without contracts or insurance, and no job safety training (China Labor Watch, 2023). Source · archived copy | Not knownNo published response from Amazon to the 2022 follow-up investigation. |
| 2020 | Link through a supplierThe Tech Transparency Project linked Luxshare, AcBel and Lens Technology, listed suppliers of Amazon devices, to transfers of Uyghur workers from Xinjiang between 2017 and 2020 (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2022). Source · archived copy | PartlyAmazon dropped Dongguan Yidong after the 2020 ASPI report; no disclosed action on the other named suppliers. |
| 2019 | China Labor Watch found Foxconn's Hengyang plant, which makes Echo and Kindle devices, used student interns and dispatch workers above legal limits, with interns on overtime and night shifts; Foxconn admitted non-compliance (Bloomberg, 2019). Source · search the archive | PartlyFoxconn fired the plant chief and HR head and cut intern numbers and overtime; Amazon began weekly audits of the plant. |
Unconfirmed reports
Credible reports that haven't been confirmed by a regulator, completed investigation or the company. They're shown for your information and don't affect the grade.
- KnowTheChain recorded one allegation linking Amazon's supply chain to Uyghur forced labour, with no disclosed steps to address it (KnowTheChain, 2025). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Hengyang Foxconn Factory Research Report (China Labor Watch, 2023) · archived copy · Plant mainly makes Kindle and Echo; 2022 findings on overtime, 34% dispatch workers, interns, no safety training
- Amazon suppliers linked to forced labour in Xinjiang (BHRRC, 2022) · archived copy · Luxshare, AcBel and Lens Technology, suppliers of Amazon devices, linked to Uyghur labour transfers 2017-2020
- KnowTheChain 2025 ICT scorecard: Amazon · search the archive · 27/100, 10th of 45; partial supplier list; one Uyghur forced labour allegation with no disclosed steps
- Amazon Conflict Minerals Report (Form SD, 2024 reporting year) · search the archive · Covers electronic devices; lists 3TG smelters and refiners; no cobalt coverage
- Amazon under fire again as China factory hires teen interns (Bloomberg via IndustryWeek, 2019) · search the archive · Foxconn admitted non-compliance at Hengyang (Echo, Kindle), fired managers; Amazon audit found six overtime cases, weekly audits
- Amazon teams up with Foxconn subsidiary for Fire TV Stick production in India (ElectronicsB2B) · search the archive · Fire TV Sticks made by Foxconn's Cloud Network Technology in Chennai, India
- Amazon Echo and Alexa speakers (JB Hi-Fi) · search the archive · Echo and Kindle devices sold at JB Hi-Fi stores in Australia
Company details
- Owned by
- Amazon.com, Inc.
- Headquarters
- United States
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Amazon Kindle & Echo ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/amazon-devices, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Harm on record means
Better-graded TV and audio
Nothing new in TV and audio that we've rated is better than Lacks transparency yet. Second-hand and refurbished goods create no new factory work, so they're Good by rule and come first.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Amazon Kindle & Echo.