Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 1 November 2026 · 4 sources
Japanese electronics company selling LED office and colour printers.
There's no proof OKI pays more than the legal minimum, which in Thailand is below a living wage, and it has no full independent audit.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 2 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 2 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 Thailand and China, 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
- 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 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
From press and retailer reports. OKI makes its products in its own factories, but we haven't recorded its countries from it yet. The rest is shown as where electronics are usually made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thailand | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| ChinaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| 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 |
| IndiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
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.
- Owns or runs its own production
- 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 OKI makes its printers at its subsidiary OKI Data Manufacturing (Thailand) in Ayutthaya, after closing printer production at OKI Electric Industry (Shenzhen) in China in October 2021, as reported by trade press. OKI adopted a group human rights policy in FY2022, surveyed all its own factories on forced labour, child labour, wages and working hours in 2023, surveys suppliers under JEITA guidelines and joined the Responsible Minerals Initiative in August 2023. It reports no findings from these checks, is not stated to be an RBA member, publishes no factory audit results or smelter list, and has no outside grievance channel yet beyond the JaCER platform.
Sources and actions
Sources 4
Show all 4 sources
- OKI moves printer production (The Recycler, 2021) · search the archive · OKI Electric Industry (Shenzhen) to stop printer production in October 2021, moving it to OKI Data Manufacturing (Thailand) in Ayutthaya
- OKI Moves Printer Production from China to Thailand (Actionable Intelligence, 2021) · search the archive · OKI to stop manufacturing printers in China and move production to Thailand
- OKI B432dn Mono LED Printer (Officeworks) · search the archive · OKI printer currently sold online by Officeworks in Australia for $339
Published by OKI or its owner
- Respect for Human Rights (OKI) · search the archive · Human rights policy FY2022; 2023 survey of all own factories on forced and child labour, wages and hours; JEITA-based supplier surveys; joined RMI August 2023; JaCER remedy platform
Company details
- Owned by
- Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd.
- Headquarters
- Japan
- Last researched
- 1 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is OKI ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/oki, last researched 1 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Better-graded laptops and computers
No laptops and computers 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 OKI.