Honda (cars)
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Japanese carmaker selling hybrid SUVs, the CR-V and Civic.
Honda's supply chain was linked to forced labour in 2025, and Honda (cars) scored 16/100 in the 2026 Lead the Charge leaderboard.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 4 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, unaudited production in high-risk countries, forced or child labour and a failing or very low rating (Lead the Charge 16/100 in 2026). 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 2025) 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 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 Thailand, 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
- Met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that listMakes its products in its own factories
- Not met: Traces its battery metals to the mine and its aluminium to smelters outside Xinjiang
Red flags 4
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wageShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 3 red flags that set it.
- 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: Failing or very low score on an independent rating: Lead the Charge 16/100 (2026)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
From Honda (cars)'s own disclosure: it makes its products in its own factories.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Thailand | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: battery metals, aluminium and steel link carmakers to state-imposed forced labour in Xinjiang, child and forced labour in DR Congo's cobalt mines and deadly nickel smelters in Indonesia; aluminium auto parts and lithium-ion batteries from China are on the US forced labour list. Source
- Owns or runs its own production
- Modern slavery statement
- Publishes its mineral smelter list and uses independently audited smelters (RMAP) for tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold
- It belongs to a scheme such as IRMA or the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative, publishes some refiners or traces some of its metals, but doesn't show both its battery metals traced to the mine and its aluminium traced to smelters outside Xinjiang.
Research notes Honda Australia says its cars come from Honda plants in Thailand and Japan (the CR-V and Accord from Thailand, the Civic and HR-V from Japan, per CarExpert). Honda publishes a conflict minerals report listing 217 smelters and refiners for tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold, and surveyed over 7,000 suppliers in FY2024, but it isn't an IRMA member and discloses no tracing of battery cobalt, nickel or lithium or of its aluminium. Lead the Charge ranks it 15th of 18.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Lead the Charge auto supply chain leaderboard | Problem found | Honda scored 16% on Human Rights & Responsible Sourcing in the Lead the Charge 2026 leaderboard (12% overall), 15th of 18; it doesn't require suppliers to respect all human rights and has no supply chain grievance mechanism. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | Honda Australia's modern slavery statement (April 2023 to March 2024) says its vehicles are bought from Honda plants in Thailand and Japan and describes no raw material tracing. View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor's 2024 list names aluminium and aluminium auto parts from China as made with forced labour; it shows no vehicle entry for Japan, where Honda builds some of its Australian cars. View |
| US forced-labour import bans (UFLPA Entity List, CBP Withhold Release Orders) | Not listed | Honda isn't on the UFLPA Entity List (November 2026). View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Listed | Lists Honda in the Sheffield Hallam (2022) and Bureau of Investigative Journalism (2025) investigations of Uyghur forced labour in car supply chains; Honda did not respond to the Bureau. View |
Confirmed issues 2
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? |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Link through a supplierThe Bureau of Investigative Journalism listed Honda among more than 30 car brands buying from supply chains with Xinjiang forced labour risks, and Honda did not respond to requests for comment (TBIJ via Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2025). Source · search the archive | Not knownHonda did not respond to the Bureau's requests for comment. |
| 2022 | Link through a supplierSheffield Hallam University and NomoGaia's Driving Force report named Honda among carmakers with supply chain exposure to metals, batteries, wiring and wheels linked to Uyghur forced labour (Sheffield Hallam University, 2022). Source · search the archive | Not knownHonda gave the report's authors a statement; no source shows it ended any link. |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Honda scorecard 2026 (Lead the Charge) · search the archive · 12% overall, 16% human rights, 15th of 18; no grievance mechanism or supplier human rights requirement
- Report: Driving Force: automotive supply chains and forced labor in the Uyghur Region (BHRRC) · search the archive · Sheffield Hallam and NomoGaia (2022) named Honda
- China: More than 30 automobile brands have products with Xinjiang forced labour risks (BHRRC, 2025) · search the archive · TBIJ investigation lists Honda as a buyer; Honda did not respond
- IRMA members and partners · search the archive · Honda isn't among IRMA's purchasing members
- Honda Australia modern slavery statement 2024 (Australian Modern Slavery Register) · search the archive · Vehicles bought from Honda plants in Thailand and Japan; 7,000+ supplier minerals survey responses
- Honda wont follow BMW, Volvo in bringing Chinese-made cars (CarExpert, May 2023) · search the archive · Honda Australia sources vehicles from Honda factories in Japan and Thailand
- Honda Conflict Minerals Report for 2023 (SEC Form SD) · search the archive · 217 smelters and refiners listed for 3TG; OECD framework; no cobalt
Company details
- Owned by
- Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
- Headquarters
- Japan
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Honda (cars) ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/honda, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
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Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Honda (cars).