BYD scandal in Brazil: Rescue of Chinese workers living in slave-like conditions

Brazilian officials said Tuesday that more than 160 Chinese workers who were living in slave-like conditions while working on a project to build an electric car factory for Chinese auto giant BYD have been rescued.

BYD’s Brazilian subsidiary said in a statement Monday that it had immediately terminated its contract with Jinjiang Construction Brazil, the company responsible for work at the site.

The plant, under construction in the northeastern state of Bahia, will be BYD’s largest electric car plant outside Asia when completed, with a production capacity of 150,000 vehicles per year.

Work on part of the site has been suspended by order of the Bahia Ministry of Public Works, which has been conducting inspections since November.

The Brazilian ministry of Labor said it had identified “163 workers who appear to be living in slave-like conditions with the Jinjiang Company, which provides services to BYD, with all of the workers were Chinese nationals”.

In a statement, the Ministry of Labor said that employees were being held in degrading working conditions.

“The workers sleep on beds without mattresses and there are no closets to put their personal belongings, which were mixed with food,” the statement added.

The ministry of labor also found that there was only one bathroom for every 31 workers, forcing them to wake up at 4 am to stand in lines before leaving to start work.

Upon arriving at the work site, “workers are exposed to intense solar radiation,” the statement said, noting signs of “skin damage”.

The ministry of labor also suspects “forced labor” conditions, as the employer confiscated workers’ passports and kept “60% of their salaries,” while they received “the remaining 40% in Chinese currency”.

Authorities held an online hearing on Thursday so BYD and Jinjiang could correct the violations they found.

BYD in Brazil said it “doesn’t tolerate violations of Brazilian law and human dignity,” adding that it immediately moved the 163 workers to hotels in the area.