Investigation finds BMW, Jaguar Land Rover, Volkswagen bought parts linked to forced labor in China

Several major automakers relied on forced labor in China for some purchased parts, a Senate Finance Committee investigation found Monday.

BMW, Jaguar Land Rover and Volkswagen have purchased parts that the US government has linked to forced labor camps in western China’s Xinjiang region, home to the Muslim Uyghur minority.

of 2 years of research The report also found that BMW and Jaguar Land Rover continued to import flagged parts as recently as last month, even after being informed of the forced labor charges.

“Automakers are sticking their necks out and saying there is no forced labor in their supply chains,” Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said in a statement. “Somehow, the Treasury Board’s oversight staff revealed what multibillion-dollar companies could not: imported cars from BMW, imported parts from Jaguar Land Rover, cars manufactured by VW AG. All of the products contained parts manufactured by suppliers that were banned due to forced labor of Uyghurs.

“Automobile manufacturers’ self-regulation is clearly not working,” he continued. “I am calling on Customs and Border Protection to step up enforcement and take a number of concrete steps to crack down on companies that facilitate the shameful use of forced labor in China.”

After the Chinese manufacturer was added to the forced labor list in December, BMW imported about 8,000 light vehicles into the United States that contained warning parts, the report said.

The investigation focused on LAN controllers, which are part of a car’s electronic system, manufactured by Sichuan Jingweida Technology Group, also known as JWD. The automaker did not purchase parts directly from JWD, but from Lear, an international parts supplier.

JWD was added to the U.S. list of forced labor manufacturers in December for allegedly working with the Xinjiang government to recruit, transport and receive forced labor.

Lear notified the three automakers in January about the parts in question, and Volkswagen has halted imports and is working to replace parts in vehicles already bound for the United States, the report said.

The report said BMW did not do the same and continued to import MINI cars until at least last month, halting imports only after the commission repeatedly questioned the company.

“The BMW Group has strict standards and policies regarding employment practices, human rights and working conditions, which all of our direct suppliers must comply with,” the company said in a statement. Statement to the New York Times.

Jaguar Land Rover similarly continued to import affected parts, which it only stopped importing last month, but told the Treasury committee that its US subsidiary was not informed that the parts had a warning.

“JLR takes human rights and forced labor issues seriously and has an active ongoing program to protect human rights and combat slavery,” the British carmaker said in a statement to the Times.

The committee’s report urges the Department of Homeland Security’s Forced Labor Task Force to accelerate its work on forced labor in China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region and improve information sharing to enforce laws banning flagged parts. It recommends providing clearer guidance on necessary audits to encourage and ensure that U.S. companies comply with the law.

The Hill has contacted BMW and Jaguar Land Rover for comment.

Updated at 12:22pm EDT