JA Solar
Harm on record. Has recent confirmed harm to workers that it hasn't put right.
Last researched 1 November 2026 · 14 sources
Chinese maker of solar panels, cells and wafers, based in Beijing.
In 2025, a subsidiary was banned from the US for buying polysilicon from Xinjiang, where state forced labour transfers operate.
Also worth knowing
JA Solar didn't act on it.
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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 4 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, unaudited production in high-risk countries, forced or child labour and silicon it can't trace to the smelter. 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 that it didn't act on: forced labour link, last recorded in 2025.
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 rights91% of its products are made in China and Malaysia, 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 the silicon in its panels to the smelter or quartz mine, outside Xinjiang (for batteries and inverters: traces its battery metals to the mine)
Red flags 4
- 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: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain
- Red flag: Relies on silicon it can't trace to the smelterShown 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
China has the largest share, 82%. Malaysia is next, at 9%.
| Country | Share | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 82% | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Malaysia | 9% | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Vietnam | 9% | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: about a third of the world's polysilicon and silicon metal is made in Xinjiang, where state-run labour transfers amount to forced labour, and home batteries rely on cobalt, lithium and other metals linked to child and forced labour.
- Modern slavery statement
- Relies on polysilicon and silicon metal, about a third of which is made in Xinjiang, where the government moves Uyghur workers into factories that no independent auditor can visit. It hasn't shown any steps to trace the silicon in its panels back to the smelter, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does. Source
Research notes JA Solar makes its own wafers, cells and modules in nine factories in China and one each in Malaysia and Vietnam, and says the panels it sold in Australia in 2023 mainly used its own cells and wafers; it does not say which factories supply Australia or where its silicon comes from. It holds no silicon traceability certificate, and its Solar Stewardship Initiative ESG certificates cover two of its Chinese sites. Its Australian modern slavery statement reports supplier site visits and an ESG questionnaire to 90 key suppliers, but no supplier list, and does not mention Xinjiang or the US listing of its subsidiary.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| US forced-labour import bans (UFLPA Entity List, CBP Withhold Release Orders) | Problem found | Subsidiary Donghai JA Solar Technology Co., Ltd. has been on the UFLPA Entity List since 15 January 2025 for sourcing polysilicon from a Xinjiang producer, and is still listed in the 29 October 2026 edition; its goods are presumed barred from the US. View |
| Solar Stewardship Initiative certified sites | Listed | Holds Solar Stewardship Initiative ESG certificates for two Chinese sites since September 2026: DongTai (Silver) and Shanghai (modules, Bronze). No traceability certificate, so its silicon isn't traced. SSI suspended its membership in January 2025 after the US listing, then lifted it. View |
| Renewable Energy & Human Rights Benchmark (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre) | Problem found | Scored 11 points in the 2025 Renewable Energy & Human Rights Benchmark, up from 2 in 2023, third among solar panel makers; the benchmark found no company publicly discloses its full solar supply chain. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Problem found | Sheffield Hallam University's 2023 assessment, posted by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, rated JA Solar's exposure to Uyghur forced labour 'very high'; no response was received. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | JA Solar Australia Pty Limited lodges modern slavery statements (2021 to 2024 on the register); the 2023 statement does not mention polysilicon, Xinjiang or the US listing. View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor's 2024 list names Chinese polysilicon and metallurgical-grade silicon as made with forced labour, and Chinese ingots, wafers, solar cells and modules as made with those inputs. 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? |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Link through a supplierThe US put JA Solar's subsidiary Donghai JA Solar Technology, which makes silicon rods, wafers, ingots and modules, on its forced labour (UFLPA) Entity List in January 2025 for sourcing polysilicon from a Xinjiang producer, and it remains listed in October 2026; Sheffield Hallam University found JA's contracts with Xinjiang plants of Daqo and Xinte ran to 2025 and 2026 (DHS, 2025). Source · archived copy | NoJA Solar hasn't said it stopped buying Xinjiang polysilicon. The industry's Solar Stewardship Initiative said the listed plant stopped production in 2018, but the US listing stands. |
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.
- Sheffield Hallam University rated JA Solar's exposure to Uyghur forced labour 'very high' for all modules it makes, in China, Vietnam and the US; JA Solar did not respond (2023). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 14
Show all 14 sources
- Certified sites (Solar Stewardship Initiative) · search the archive · JA Solar GmbH: ESG Silver (DongTai) and Bronze (Shanghai) from 28 Sep 2026; no traceability certificate
- Report from Sheffield Hallam University reveals significant risks of forced labor in solar supply chains (BHRRC, 2023) · search the archive · JA Solar: allegation of very high exposure; no response received
- Renewable Energy and Human Rights Benchmark 2025 (BHRRC) · search the archive · No company publicly discloses its full solar supply chain
- DHS announces addition of 37 PRC-based companies to UFLPA Entity List (2025) · archived copy · Donghai JA Solar Technology, which makes silicon rods, wafers, ingots and modules, listed from 15 Jan 2025 for sourcing polysilicon from a Xinjiang producer
- Statement #2023-991 (Australian Modern Slavery Register) · search the archive · JA Solar Australia Pty Limited statements for 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024
- List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor (US Department of Labor, 2024) · search the archive · Chinese polysilicon and metallurgical-grade silicon listed for forced labour; solar cells, modules, ingots and wafers for forced-labour inputs
- JA Solar subsidiary added to US forced labour prevention list (PV Tech, 2025) · search the archive · Listing of Donghai JA Solar announced 14 Jan 2025; no comment from JA Solar
- JA Solar UFLPA factory 'ceased production in 2018', SSI claims after investigation (PV Tech, 2025) · search the archive · SSI said Donghai JA's only site stopped production in 2018 and the company was adapting its sourcing; critics questioned the review
- JA Solar announces 9 GW Oman solar manufacturing (TaiyangNews, 2024) · search the archive · Oman cell and module plant planned in phases; overseas business over 50% of sales
- European group investigates JA Solar subsidiary on UFLPA list, says all is good (Solar Power World, 2025) · search the archive · SSI suspension 15 Jan 2025, review 16-24 Jan, suspension lifted; no statement from JA Solar
- Over-Exposed: Uyghur Region Exposure Assessment for Solar Industry Sourcing (Sheffield Hallam University, 2023) · search the archive · JA Solar rated VERY HIGH for all modules; polysilicon contracts with Daqo Xinjiang to Dec 2025 and Xinte Xinjiang to Dec 2026; modules made in China and Vietnam
- JA Solar celebrates its 20th anniversary (Green Building Africa, 2025) · search the archive · Nine manufacturing facilities in China and one each in Malaysia and Vietnam
- JA Solar achieves third place in 2025 Renewable Energy and Human Rights Benchmark (AFSIA, 2025) · search the archive · Score 11 in 2025, up from 2 in 2023
Published by JA Solar or its owner
- Modern slavery statement, JA Solar Australia Pty Limited, 2023 · search the archive · Modules sold in Australia in 2023 mainly contain cells and wafers made within JA Solar Group; supplier site visits; 90 key suppliers surveyed; no mention of polysilicon or Xinjiang
Company details
- Headquarters
- China
- Last researched
- 1 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is JA Solar ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/ja-solar, last researched 1 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Harm on record means
Other solar panels brands
Nothing we've rated in solar panels is better than Lacks transparency yet.
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