Brazil says workers at China's BYD site are victims of human trafficking
Reuters
Chinese workers at a construction site in Brazil for a factory owned by China's electric vehicle producer BYD are victims of human trafficking, Brazilian labor authorities said on Thursday in a growing controversy in BYD's biggest overseas market, News.az reports citing Reuters.
BYD (002594.SZ), opens new tab and contractor Jinjiang Group have agreed to assist and house the 163 workers in hotels until a deal to end their contracts is reached, Brazil's Labor Prosecutor's Office said in a statement after meeting representatives from both firms.
The brief statement did not provide details on how prosecutors had reached their conclusion.
BYD and Jinjiang did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday. Jinjiang rejected the Brazilian authorities' assessment on Monday that the workers at the site in the eastern state of Bahia were operating under "slavery-like conditions".
Jinjiang said, in a social media post reposted by a BYD spokesperson, that the portrayal of the workers as "enslaved" was inaccurate and that there were translation misunderstandings.
BYD initially said it had cut ties with Jinjiang, but a BYD executive later accused "foreign forces" and some Chinese media of "deliberately smearing Chinese brands and the country and undermining the relationship between China and Brazil".
China's foreign ministry said on Friday it has maintained communication with the Brazilian side to verify the situation, adding that China protects workers' rights and requires Chinese companies to operate in compliance with the law.
BYD (002594.SZ), opens new tab and contractor Jinjiang Group have agreed to assist and house the 163 workers in hotels until a deal to end their contracts is reached, Brazil's Labor Prosecutor's Office said in a statement after meeting representatives from both firms.
The brief statement did not provide details on how prosecutors had reached their conclusion.
BYD and Jinjiang did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday. Jinjiang rejected the Brazilian authorities' assessment on Monday that the workers at the site in the eastern state of Bahia were operating under "slavery-like conditions".
Jinjiang said, in a social media post reposted by a BYD spokesperson, that the portrayal of the workers as "enslaved" was inaccurate and that there were translation misunderstandings.
BYD initially said it had cut ties with Jinjiang, but a BYD executive later accused "foreign forces" and some Chinese media of "deliberately smearing Chinese brands and the country and undermining the relationship between China and Brazil".
China's foreign ministry said on Friday it has maintained communication with the Brazilian side to verify the situation, adding that China protects workers' rights and requires Chinese companies to operate in compliance with the law.
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