Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Chinese smartphone maker.
vivo's supply chain was linked to forced labour in 2019, and workers in India and Bangladesh are very unlikely to earn a living wage.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 0 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 4 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, a hidden, unaudited supply chain in high-risk countries, forced or child labour and untraced high-risk mined materials. 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 2019) is more than 5 years old.
- 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 0 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
- 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 its cobalt, gold and other conflict minerals to the mine
Red flags 4
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Hidden supply chain, mostly in countries with poor worker rights
- 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 press and retailer reports; vivo doesn't say where its products are made. 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 |
| India | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| Bangladesh | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Indonesia | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Pakistan | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | High |
| Türkiye | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Very high |
| 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 |
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.
- Makes part of its range in its own factories
- 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 vivo makes most of its phones in its own manufacturing centres in Dongguan and Chongqing, China and Greater Noida, India, with others reported in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkey, smaller production in Egypt and licensed partners, but it gives no production split or supplier list. It publishes a sustainability report and a responsible minerals statement, but no supplier audit findings; it is not an RBA member, makes no living wage commitment and has no modern slavery statement on the Australian register. It scored 2.8/100 on the 2026 World Benchmarking Alliance Social Benchmark.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| News reporting and NGO investigations | Problem found | Named by ASPI in 2020 among 83 brands linked to factories using transferred Uyghur workers, via supplier O-Film Technology. View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | Electronics from China and cobalt from the DRC appear on the US DOL list of goods made with child or forced labour. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Not listed | No vivo statement appears on the Australian Modern Slavery Register. 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? |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Link through a supplierThe Australian Strategic Policy Institute found Uyghur workers transferred from Xinjiang under conditions strongly suggesting forced labour at O-Film Technology, which lists vivo as a strategic partner (ASPI, 2020). Source · search the archive | Not knownNo public response from vivo to the findings has been reported. |
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.
- Shop Ethical (2023), citing China Labor Watch, reported excessive hours, wage theft, poor living conditions and workplace bullying at factories supplying vivo; the underlying China Labor Watch report has not been traced. Source
- Indian civil rights group PUDR reported contract workers at vivo's Greater Noida plant were paid below statutory rates, fined for absences and dismissed without notice in mass layoffs; vivo said the layoffs were in line with a business decision (PUDR; IANS, 2017). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Vivo Mobile Communication Co Ltd (Shop Ethical!) · search the archive · China Labor Watch 2023 supplier abuses; WBA Social Benchmark 2026 score 2.8/100; ASPI 2020 link
- US DOL List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor · search the archive · Lists electronics from China and cobalt from the DRC
- Uyghurs for Sale (Australian Strategic Policy Institute, 2020) · search the archive · O-Film received Uyghur workers from Hotan; O-Film lists vivo among strategic partners; vivo among 83 brands named
- Inside vivo, China's Quiet Smartphone Giant (ProPakistani, 2026) · search the archive · Own plants in Dongguan and Greater Noida, Egypt investment, licensed partners; about 40,000 staff; owned by Shen Wei since 2023
- PUDR statement on Vivo India Pvt Ltd, Greater Noida (2017) · search the archive · Contract workers' pay, absence deductions, mass layoffs and arrests in 2017; vivo denied firing workers
- Vivo opens smart manufacturing centers in Pakistan and Turkey (CnTechPost, 2021) · search the archive · Centres in Dongguan, Chongqing, India, Bangladesh and Indonesia, plus new ones in Pakistan and Turkey
Published by vivo or its owner
- vivo's Statement on Responsible Mineral Procurement · search the archive · vivo publishes a responsible mineral procurement statement
Company details
- Headquarters
- China
- Employees
- About 40,000
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is vivo ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/vivo, 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 vivo.