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Article

31 Jul 2016

Author:
Peter Bengtsen & Annie Kelly, Guardian [UK]

Paint used by car makers linked to illegal mines in India reliant on child labour and debt bondage, company responses included

"Vauxhall and BMW among car firms linked to child labour over glittery mica paint", 28 July 2016

Some of the world’s biggest car makers including Vauxhall, BMW, Volkswagen and Audi are launching investigations into their paint supply chains after the Guardian linked their suppliers to illegal mines in India where child labour and debt bondage are widespread...Phil Bloomer, executive director of the Business & Human Rights Centre, said...Nobody wants the curse of forced and child labour in their supply chains, but, with large-scale hidden production, it takes a lot more than a simple audit of your apparent ‘supplier’ to eliminate modern slavery from your supply chain....Volkswagen (which owns Audi)...[said]...We are engaging with these relevant suppliers to further evaluate the allegations and investigate whether or not a corrective action plan shall be implemented....Vauxhall (part of GM group)...[said]... GM will conduct a full investigation of these suppliers regarding the allegations...BMW...[said]...If the allegations are substantiated, we will do everything to ensure that the company involved is no longer part of our supply chain in the future

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