Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Finnish company making HMD smartphones and Nokia feature phones.
HMD can't show that the workers who make its products in Vietnam and India earn a living wage, which workers there are very unlikely to.
Also worth knowing
It has no full independent audit.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 3 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, unaudited production in high-risk countries and untraced high-risk mined materials. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- 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 1 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
- 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 3
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of 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 2 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
HMD names some of the countries it makes in: China, Vietnam, India and Bangladesh. 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 |
| Vietnam | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| India | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| Bangladesh | No guarantee of rights | Far 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
- 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 HMD outsources phone making, including Nokia-branded phones it makes under licence from Nokia, to contract manufacturers (historically Foxconn's FIH Mobile; in India Dixon and Zet Town) in China, Vietnam, India and Bangladesh, and is moving most production to India; it gives no shares or supplier list. Its modern slavery statement says all China and Bangladesh partners were audited against JAC and SA8000 requirements in 2024 with no child or forced labour found, but gives no other findings. It is not an RBA member, publishes no smelter list and has no living wage commitment.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report | Not listed | HMD was founded in 2016 and is not in Baptist World Aid's Electronics Industry Report, whose last edition was in 2016. View |
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | HMD Global Oy publishes a UK Modern Slavery Act statement, most recently for 2024, reporting audits of manufacturing partners and no child or forced labour found. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Shop Ethical - HMD Global · search the archive · Shop Ethical company page, updated August 2025, lists no labour criticisms
- CircuitDigest - HMD shifts manufacturing from China to India (2024) · search the archive · HMD moving major manufacturing from China to India with Dixon and Zet Town
- WhistleOut - HMD Skyline Australia (2024) · search the archive · HMD phones sold in Australia at JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman and Amazon
- Kyodo/PR release: HMD global founded to create new generation of Nokia-branded phones · search the archive · 2016: HMD gets access to device manufacturing and engineering of Foxconn subsidiary FIH Mobile, which bought Microsoft's Hanoi plant
- Storyboard18: Nokia bets on India, extends HMD licensing deal · search the archive · Sept 2025: Nokia extended HMD's licence 2-3 years past 2026; HMD makes Nokia feature phones in India and China
- HMD shifts bulk of production from China to India (India Sea Trade News, 2024) · search the archive · Bulk of production moving from China to India; Dixon and Zet Town make its feature phones in India
Published by HMD or its owner
- HMD - UK Modern Slavery Act Statement (2025) · search the archive · ODM partners in China, Vietnam, India and Bangladesh audited; 2024 audits found no child or forced labour
Company details
- Headquarters
- Finland
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is HMD ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/hmd, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Better-graded phones
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.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent HMD.