Pantum
Harm on record. Has recent confirmed harm to workers that it hasn't put right.
Last researched 1 November 2026 · 8 sources
Chinese maker of laser printers and toner, owned by Ninestar.
In 2023, Pantum's maker, Zhuhai Pantum Electronics, was put on a US list of firms working with Xinjiang authorities to receive forced labour.
Also worth knowing
Pantum hasn't put this right.
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Why it's graded Harm on record
- 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 untraced high-risk mined materials. 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 hasn't put right: forced labour, last recorded in 2023.
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 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
- 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 cobalt, gold and other conflict minerals 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 high-risk mined materials it can't traceShown 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
From Pantum's own disclosure: it makes its products in its own factories.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
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 Pantum printers are made in its own manufacturing parks in China: Zhuhai (Pingsha, opened 2022) and Hefei (opened 2024). Since 2021 it has been wholly owned by Ninestar, which also owns Lexmark and G&G and reports 23,139 staff across the group. Ninestar says it ran ESG audits of 1,328 suppliers and 274 conflict-mineral checks in 2024, but it is not an RBA member, publishes no smelter list and does not address Xinjiang. Pantum's maker remains on the US forced labour import ban list; in 2024 a US court refused to suspend the listing while Ninestar's challenge continues.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| US forced-labour import bans (UFLPA Entity List, CBP Withhold Release Orders) | Problem found | Zhuhai Pantum Electronics Co. Ltd. has been on the US UFLPA Entity List since 12 June 2023, which bars its goods from US import; it was still listed in 2026. 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? |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | In June 2023 the US government added Zhuhai Pantum Electronics, the Ninestar subsidiary that makes Pantum printers in its own factories, to the UFLPA Entity List of companies working with the Xinjiang government to recruit, transfer or receive forced labour; in February 2024 a US trade court refused to suspend the listing while Ninestar's challenge continues (DHS; GTR, 2024). Source · archived copy | NoNinestar denies the finding and has challenged the listing in court and by petition; it was still listed in 2026 and no remedy for workers has been reported. |
Sources and actions
Sources 8
Show all 8 sources
- UFLPA Entity List (US Department of Homeland Security) · archived copy · Ninestar and eight Zhuhai subsidiaries, including Zhuhai Pantum Electronics Co. Ltd., listed from 12 June 2023 for working with the Xinjiang government to recruit or receive forced labour
- US court upholds forced labour embargo against Ninestar (GTR) · search the archive · Court of International Trade refused on 27 February 2024 to lift the import ban, citing an informant, Chinese government documents and company records
- The Future of Forced Labor: Enforcing the UFLPA in the Wake of Ninestar Corp. v. United States (University of Chicago Law Review) · search the archive · Record showed information that Ninestar worked with the Xinjiang government to recruit and transfer Uyghur workers; court found the listing not arbitrary
- Ninestar Has Filed Another Petition with FLETF to Obtain Removal from the UFLPA Entity List (Actionable Intelligence, 2026) · search the archive · Ninestar and subsidiaries including Pantum still seeking removal from the UFLPA Entity List in 2026
- Pantum's Printer Factory in Hefei Begins Operations (Actionable Intelligence, 2024) · search the archive · Hefei factory began operations January 2024 as Pantum's second manufacturing base in China, alongside Zhuhai
- Pantum Printers (Inkstation, Australia) · search the archive · Australian online retailer selling Pantum mono and colour laser printers with shipping across Australia
Published by Pantum or its owner
- Pantum company profile · search the archive · Wholly owned by Ninestar since 2021; manufacturing parks in Zhuhai (2022) and Hefei (2024); sold in over 110 countries
- 2024 Ninestar ESG Report · search the archive · 23,139 employees; ESG audits of 1,328 suppliers; 274 conflict minerals audits using CMRT; not an RBA member; no mention of Xinjiang
Company details
- Owned by
- Ninestar Corporation
- Headquarters
- China
- Last researched
- 1 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Pantum ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/pantum, last researched 1 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Harm on record 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 Pantum.