Cars, bikes & e-mobility
Most of the harm in a car or e-bike happens long before the assembly line, in the mines that dig its battery metals and the smelters that make its aluminium, some of them in Xinjiang, where audits can't go.
74%
of the world's cobalt was mined in DR Congo in 2025
SourceUS Geological Survey (2026): Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Cobalt (opens in a new tab)
67%
of the world's nickel was mined in Indonesia in 2025
SourceUS Geological Survey (2026): Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Nickel (opens in a new tab)
51/90
was the best score any of 13 electric car makers reached in Amnesty's 2024 ranking of battery supply chain checks
How the 14 brands we've graded split
- Good0 brands
- On Track0 brands
- Lacks transparency1179% brands, a poor grade
- Harm on record321% brands, a poor grade
The industry at a glance
Xinjiang makes about 9% of the world's aluminium, and once it's melted into alloys elsewhere in China its origin can't be traced. (Human Rights Watch, 2024: China: Carmakers Implicated in Uyghur Forced Labor (opens in a new tab))
The US Department of Labor lists cobalt from DR Congo for child and forced labour, nickel from Indonesia for forced labour, and aluminium car parts from China as made with forced labour. (US Department of Labor, 2024: List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor (opens in a new tab))
Labour Lens grades vehicles on the plants that make them, and checks whether the company traces its battery metals to the mine and its aluminium to smelters outside Xinjiang. A company that takes no steps on either is Lacks transparency.
On the record
- Human Rights Watch found problems in the aluminium sourcing of all five carmakers it examined in 2024: BYD, General Motors, Tesla, Toyota and Volkswagen. GM, Toyota and BYD didn't answer its questions. (Human Rights Watch, 2024: China: Carmakers Implicated in Uyghur Forced Labor (opens in a new tab))
- In February 2024, US customs held about 1,000 Porsches, several hundred Bentleys and several thousand Audis at ports because a small Chinese part breached the US ban on goods made with forced labour. (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2024: Volkswagen cars held up at US ports over part linked to allegations of forced labour in Xinjiang (opens in a new tab))
- In 2024 the US Department of Labor sued Hyundai's Alabama plant, a parts supplier and a staffing agency over a 13-year-old who worked up to 60 hours a week on a line pressing sheet metal into car body parts. (US Department of Labor, 2024: US Department of Labor files complaint to stop Hyundai manufacturer, partners from using, profiting from oppressive child labor (opens in a new tab))
- A furnace explosion at a nickel plant in Indonesia's Morowali Industrial Park killed at least 20 workers and injured about 40 on 24 December 2023. (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2024: Indonesia: Death toll rises to 20 at Morowali nickel smelter (opens in a new tab))
- Brazilian labour authorities rescued 220 Chinese workers from the site of BYD's new factory in Bahia, and prosecutors sued BYD and two contractors for slave-like conditions and trafficking. (Al Jazeera, 2025: Brazilian prosecutors sue Chinese carmaker BYD over labour conditions (opens in a new tab))
- Migrant workers at Taiwanese bike factories were found paying recruitment fees of up to US$6,500. By September 2025 US customs had blocked imports of Giant's Taiwan-made bikes over forced labour, and in October Giant said it would repay recruitment fees. (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2025: Taiwan: Migrant workers at bike manufactures exporting worldwide charged high recruitment fees & at risk of debt bondage (opens in a new tab))
- The US Department of Labor lists 15 resources in this industry from 16 countries as made with child or forced labour. See the list
Along the supply chain
Cobalt from DR Congo, nickel from Indonesia, lithium from Australia, Chile, China and Zimbabwe
What happens here
Children dig cobalt by hand in DR Congo, and the US lists Indonesian nickel for forced labour and Zimbabwean lithium for child labour.
What we check
Whether the company traces its cobalt, nickel and lithium to named mines that are checked independently, for example by IRMA.
Aluminium smelters, steel mills and battery material refineries, mostly in China and Indonesia
What happens here
Xinjiang's aluminium and steel plants take part in state-run labour transfers of Uyghur workers. Once melted into alloys, the metal's origin can't be traced.
What we check
Whether it traces its aluminium to named smelters outside Xinjiang, and its battery metals to named refiners.
Rubber plantations, cattle ranches and mica mines
What happens here
Natural rubber for tyres, leather for seats and mica for paint shimmer are linked to forced or child labour where they're grown or mined.
What we check
Whether it names where its rubber, leather and mica come from.
Thousands of parts makers, and battery cell plants mostly in China, South Korea and Japan
What happens here
Parts makers are many and change often. In the US, a 13-year-old was found working on a Hyundai supplier's line.
What we check
Whether it publishes its main suppliers and has them independently audited.
Car plants in Japan, China, Thailand, South Korea and Europe
What happens here
Assembly plants are large and mostly well regulated, but workers building BYD's new factory in Brazil were found in slave-like conditions.
What we check
Whether it runs its own plants, names them and shows workers' rights are respected.
Taiwan, China, Vietnam and Cambodia
What happens here
Migrant workers at Taiwanese bike factories have paid recruitment fees of up to US$6,500 to get their jobs, which can trap them in debt.
What we check
Whether it names its frame and assembly factories and shows workers paid no recruitment fees.
The extra check for Good
Traces its battery metals to the mine and its aluminium to smelters outside Xinjiang.
Missing it holds a brand at On Track at best, and taking no steps at all means Lacks transparency.
Resources on the US Department of Labor's list
The list names resources and the countries where the Department found child labour or forced labour in producing them. It covers whole countries, not companies.
15 resources shown
| Resource | Child labour | Forced labour |
|---|---|---|
| Rubber | Cambodia, Indonesia, Liberia, Myanmar, Philippines, Vietnam | Myanmar |
| Leather | Bangladesh, Pakistan, Vietnam | Not listed |
| Cobalt Ore (heterogenite) | DR Congo | DR Congo |
| Leather Goods/Accessories | India, Mexico | Not listed |
| Mica | India, Madagascar | Not listed |
| Aluminum | Not listed | China |
| Auto Parts and Components (aluminum) | Not listed | China* (made with listed inputs) |
| Copper | DR Congo | Not listed |
| Copper Ore | Zambia | Not listed |
| Copper Products | DR Congo* (made with listed inputs) | Not listed |
| Lithium | Zimbabwe | Not listed |
| Lithium-Ion Batteries | China* (made with listed inputs) | Not listed |
| Nickel | Not listed | Indonesia |
| Polysilicon | Not listed | China |
| Rubber Gloves | Not listed | Malaysia |
* Made with inputs listed for child or forced labour, such as cocoa or cotton grown elsewhere.
What earns each grade
Good
0 of 14 brands
- Traces its battery metals to named mines that are checked independently, and its aluminium to smelters outside Xinjiang
- Publishes its main suppliers and has them independently audited
- Makes its vehicles in its own plants or at named factories, with workers' rights respected
On Track
0 of 14 brands
- Belongs to IRMA or the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative, or publishes its battery refiners, but doesn't trace both its battery metals and its aluminium
- Assembles in countries with strong labour protections and publishes its suppliers
- Takes no steps to trace its battery metals or aluminium, which alone means Lacks transparency
- Relies on a supplier code of conduct and "responsibly sourced" claims with no mines or smelters named
For example Subaru, Mazda, Mitsubishi · See all 11
Signs of a fair supply chain
- Battery metals traced to named mines with IRMA audits
- Aluminium traced to named smelters, with Xinjiang excluded
- A published list of battery refiners and cell makers
- For bikes, frames made at named factories where workers paid no recruitment fees
Warning signs
- "Conflict-free" or "responsibly sourced" with no mines or smelters named
- A supplier code of conduct offered as proof
- Joint ventures in China left out of its checks
- No answer to investigators' questions
Try the rules
Pick an example or tick what a company can show, and see the grade the rules would give it.
The grade it would get
Grade: Lacks transparency
This company makes its products in its own factories in Japan. Until it traces its battery metals to the mine and its aluminium to smelters outside Xinjiang, it can't show that the people who dig and smelt them are free and fairly paid.
Good requirements 5 of 7
- Met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certification
- Met: Respects worker rights
- Met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Not met: Shows where its earlier production stages happen, not just the final one
- 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 list
- Not met: Traces its battery metals to the mine and its aluminium to smelters outside Xinjiang
Red flags 1
- Red flag: Relies on battery metals and aluminium it can't trace to the mine or smelter
- Red flag: Fails its category's check on battery metals and aluminium traced (means Lacks transparency)
A made-up company, graded by the same rules as every brand on Labour Lens. What Lacks transparency means
The full rules are on the Grading page, with the finer points on Resources.
The brands we've graded
Where they make things
14 of the 14 brands say where they make their products. The countries they name most:
| Country | Brands | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 7 | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Thailand | 6 | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| China | 5 | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Türkiye | 3 | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Very high |
| South Africa | 2 | Regular violations | Below a living wage | Low |
| South Korea | 2 | No guarantee of rights | Close to a living wage | Low |
| United States | 2 | Systematic violations | Below a living wage | Low |
| France | 1 | Regular violations | About a living wage | Low |
Labels they hold
Browse by type
No cars, bikes & e-mobility brand is Good yet
The brands list shows the best available in each type.
Questions and answers
6 questions
Are electric cars worse for workers than petrol cars?
Both are made with aluminium and steel, which carry the Xinjiang risk. Electric cars add battery metals: cobalt, nickel, lithium and graphite, mined and refined in places with serious labour problems.
On Labour Lens the same check covers both. A petrol car needs its aluminium traced, and an electric car its battery metals as well.
Why can't audits find Xinjiang aluminium?
Independent auditors can't work freely in Xinjiang, where the government moves Uyghur workers into factories under state labour programmes. Aluminium smelted there is sold on and melted into alloys elsewhere in China, so its origin disappears.
The only way to show it isn't in a car is to trace the aluminium to named smelters outside Xinjiang. Human Rights Watch (opens in a new tab) found problems with how all five carmakers it examined did this.
Is a Japanese or German car safer?
For the final assembly, mostly yes: car plants in Japan, Germany and South Korea are large, regulated workplaces. But their metals, batteries and parts come from the same mines and smelters as everyone else's, so where a car is assembled doesn't show where its materials came from.
Why are bikes graded with cars?
Bikes, e-bikes and cars share the same risky materials, aluminium and, for anything with a motor, battery metals, so the same check applies. Bike frames are mostly made in Taiwan, China, Vietnam and Cambodia, where migrant workers have paid large recruitment fees to get jobs.
What is IRMA?
The Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance audits whole mine sites on labour, safety and community rights and publishes the reports. It's run equally by miners, buyers, unions, communities and campaign groups.
Carmakers join as buyers, which is a commitment rather than proof, so on Labour Lens membership counts as working towards the check. More about IRMA
How are cars graded on Labour Lens?
Cars, bikes and e-mobility are graded on the plants where they're made, like any factory. On top of that, Good needs battery metals traced to the mine and aluminium traced to smelters outside Xinjiang. A vehicle without a big battery needs only the aluminium.
IRMA or Aluminium Stewardship Initiative membership, a published refiner list or some traced metal counts as working towards it, so On Track at best. Taking no steps means Lacks transparency.
Sources
- China: Carmakers Implicated in Uyghur Forced Labor (opens in a new tab) Human Rights Watch, 2024
- List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor (opens in a new tab) US Department of Labor, 2024
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Cobalt (opens in a new tab) US Geological Survey, 2026
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Nickel (opens in a new tab) US Geological Survey, 2026
- Global: New human rights ranking of electric vehicle industry exposes laggards (opens in a new tab) Amnesty International, 2024
- Volkswagen cars held up at US ports over part linked to allegations of forced labour in Xinjiang (opens in a new tab) Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2024
- US Department of Labor files complaint to stop Hyundai manufacturer, partners from using, profiting from oppressive child labor (opens in a new tab) US Department of Labor, 2024
- Indonesia: Death toll rises to 20 at Morowali nickel smelter (opens in a new tab) Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2024
- Brazilian prosecutors sue Chinese carmaker BYD over labour conditions (opens in a new tab) Al Jazeera, 2025
- Taiwan: Migrant workers at bike manufactures exporting worldwide charged high recruitment fees & at risk of debt bondage (opens in a new tab) Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2025
Figures are as each source published them. The grades and brand counts are Labour Lens's own, from the brands we've researched.
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