1 Oct 2026
Taiwan: Migrants making electronic & car products for global brands allegedly subjected to labour rights abuse, finds investigation
Summary
Date Reported: 1 Oct 2026
Location: Taiwan
Companies
Pegavision - Employer , Pegatron - Parent Company , Visioneering Technologies - Reported buyerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Vietnam , Manufacturing: General , Women , Unknown migration status )Issues
Recruitment Fees , Debt BondageResponse
Response sought: Yes, by NGO
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: From April through July 2026, Transparentem engaged all manufacturers and buyers “with possible supply chain connections” to the abuse. Pegavision and Pegatron reacted to Transparentem’s findings, while Visioneering Technologies did not. Pegavision had adopted a no-fee policy in January 2026, and said that it “is committed to providing appropriate remediation, including reimbursement of verified recruitment-related fees, for eligible migrant workers identified through the ongoing review. The review is being conducted to establish the relevant facts and determine the appropriate scope and implementation of this commitment.”
Source type: NGO
Summary
Date Reported: 1 Oct 2026
Location: Taiwan
Companies
Yulon Nissan Motor - Investor , China Motor Corporation (CMC) - Employer , Mitsubishi Motors (part of Mitsubishi Group) - Reported buyer , Mitsubishi Group - Parent Company , Vantage Vehicles - Reported buyerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Thailand , Manufacturing: General , Men , Unknown migration status )Issues
Recruitment Fees , Debt BondageResponse
Response sought: Yes, by NGO
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: From April through July 2026, Transparentem engaged all manufacturers and buyers “with possible supply chain connections” to the abuse. CMC and Mitsubishi Motors reacted to Transparentem’s findings, while Vantage Vehicles and Yulon Group did not. CMC said that “regarding the specific matters you raised, our company has initiated an internal review and research process. Moving forward, we will not only continue to monitor changes in legislation closely but also aim to benchmark our practices against international standards for further optimization.” Transparentem says it is unclear if CMC will remediate impacted workers.
Source type: NGO
Summary
Date Reported: 1 Oct 2026
Location: Taiwan
Companies
Advanced Optoelectronic Technology (AOT) - Employer , Samsung Electronics - Reported buyer , Garmin Ltd. - Reported buyerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Philippines , Manufacturing: General , Women , Unknown migration status )Issues
Recruitment Fees , Debt BondageResponse
Response sought: Yes, by NGO
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: From April through July 2026, Transparentem engaged all manufacturers and buyers “with possible supply chain connections” to the abuse. AOT did not react to Transparentem’s findings. Garmin and Samsung said they currently were not sourcing from AOT. Samsung said that it would not disclose if AOT was a former supplier and that it would not address issues with AOT. Garmin confirmed that AOT was a former supplier and said that it would consider addressing issues with AOT.
Source type: NGO
Summary
Date Reported: 1 Oct 2026
Location: Taiwan
Companies
Digital Generation International (DGI) - Employer , Acer - Reported buyer , Delta Electronics - Reported buyer , Hon Hai (Foxconn) - Reported buyerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Vietnam , Manufacturing: General , Women , Unknown migration status )Issues
Recruitment Fees , Debt Bondage , Restricted mobilityResponse
Response sought: Yes, by NGO
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: From April through July 2026, Transparentem engaged all manufacturers and buyers “with possible supply chain connections” to the abuse. DGI did not react to Transparentem’s findings. Acer said that it had stopped purchasing from DGI two years ago and would not address issues with DGI. Delta Electronics merely confirmed receipt of Transparentem’s inquiry.
Source type: NGO
Summary
Date Reported: 1 Oct 2026
Location: Taiwan
Companies
Tsurumi Pump (part of Tsurumi Manufacturing) - Employer , Technosub - Reported buyerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Vietnam , Manufacturing: General , Men , Unknown migration status )Issues
Recruitment Fees , Debt BondageResponse
Response sought: Yes, by NGO
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: From April through July 2026, Transparentem engaged all manufacturers and buyers “with possible supply chain connections” to the abuse. Tsurumi Pump, Tsurumi Manufacturing (parent of Tsurumi Pump), and Technosub did not react to Transparentem’s findings.
Source type: NGO
Summary
Date Reported: 1 Oct 2026
Location: Taiwan
Companies
Alphabet - Parent Company , Lenovo - Reported buyer , NVIDIA Corporation - Reported buyer , Compal Electronics - Employer , Amazon.com - Reported buyer , Dell - Reported buyer , Delta Electronics - Reported buyer , Google (part of Alphabet) - Reported buyerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Vietnam , Manufacturing: General , Women , Unknown migration status )Issues
Recruitment Fees , Debt BondageResponse
Response sought: Yes, by NGO
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: From April through July 2026, Transparentem engaged all manufacturers and buyers “with possible supply chain connections” to the abuse. Compal told Transparentem that it had adopted a zero-fee policy; current workers were then reimbursed and is continuing its remediation process through a second phase of reimbursement. Compal also said it was committed to transparent engagement with relevant stakeholders and said it would continue to provide Transparentem with material updates as the investigation and remediation process progresses. Amazon, Dell, Delta Electronics, and Lenovo also reacted to Transparentem’s findings; Google and Nvidia did not.
Source type: NGO
Summary
Date Reported: 1 Oct 2026
Location: Taiwan
Companies
Best Buy - Reported buyer , Decathlon - Reported buyer , REI - Reported buyer , Walmart - Reported buyer , Garmin Ltd. - Employer , Amazon.com - Reported buyerAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Vietnam , Manufacturing: General , Women , Unknown migration status )Issues
Harassment (other than sexual) , Recruitment Fees , Debt Bondage , Intimidation , Freedom of ExpressionResponse
Response sought: Yes, by NGO
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: From April through July 2026, Transparentem engaged all manufacturers and buyers “with possible supply chain connections” to the abuse. Garmin and its buyers Amazon, Decathlon, and REI reacted to Transparentem’s findings, while buyers Best Buy and Walmart merely confirmed receipt of Transparentem’s inquiry. Garmin engaged “transparently” with Transparentem and said it adopted a zero-fee policy years ago. After two months, all current employees who had migrated from Vietnam had been reimbursed. Garmin said it was also in the process of contacting former for reimbursement.
Source type: NGO
An investigation by Transparentem found that migrant workers employed by seven manufacturers in Taiwan's electronics, car, and pump sectors faced high recruitment fees and related costs, requiring them to take loans and putting them at risk of debt bondage.
Through interviews with 24 workers from Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines, the investigation found recruitment fee charging and other abuses at Compal Electronics, Garmin, Pegavision, China Motor Corporation (CMC), Advanced Optoelectronic Technology (AOT), Digital Generation International (DGI), and Tsurumi Pump.
The workers who reported abuse were predominantly female and from Vietnam.
Transparentem sent reports to the seven manufacturers and 18 buyers with "possible supply chain connections" to the manufacturers, including: Amazon, Acer, Best Buy, Decathlon, Dell, Delta Electronics, Foxconn, Garmin, Google, Lenovo, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, Nvidia, REI, Samsung, Technosub, Vantage Vehicles, Visioneering Technologies and Walmart.
Acer, Amazon, CMC, Compal, Decathlon, Dell, Delta Electronics, Garmin, Lenovo, Mitsubishi Motors, Pegatron, Pegavision, REI and Samsung reacted to the findings, with Compal and Garmin taking steps to reimburse workers. Best Buy, Delta Electronics, and Walmart confirmed receipt of Transparentem's inquiry. AOT, DGI, Technosub, Tsurumi Manufacturing, Tsurumi Pump, Vantage Vehicles, Visioneering Technologies and Yulun Group did not respond.
Transparentem is calling on these companies to establish a "worker-driven initiative" based on contractual agreements between global unions and global brands. It suggests the new binding agreement could draw on the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Fair Food Program; the International Accord for Health & Safety in the Textile & Garment Industry; the Dindigul Agreement to End Gender-Based Violence and Harassment; and the collective bargaining agreements secured by PVH Corp and IndustriALL Global Union in Cambodia.