Brazilian court removes BYD from list of firms linked to forced labor

By Fabio Teixeira

RIO DE JANEIRO, April 9 (Reuters) – A Brazilian court has issued an injunction removing Chinese automaker BYD from a government list of firms accused of employing workers in slavery-like conditions, a document seen by Reuters on Thursday showed.

The injunction issued by labor court judge Luiz Fausto Marinho de Medeiros provisionally removes BYD’s name from the list until a final ruling is reached.

The order, dated Wednesday, says that adding the firm to Brazil’s so-called “dirty list” was possibly illegal as the decision was based on the premise that BYD was the real employer of the workers. The decision can be appealed.

The firm was added over a 2024 case where a BYD contractor hired 163 workers, some of whom had contracts saying they had to hand over their passports, let most of their wages be sent directly to China, and pay an almost $900 deposit that they could only get back after ‌six ⁠months’ work.

BYD did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The firm has previously said it had no knowledge of any violations until reports by Brazilian media in late November 2024.

The workers were housed in what authorities describe as “degrading conditions” in Brazil’s northeastern state of Bahia. At the time, authorities said BYD was ultimately responsible for the workers’ conditions as it should be supervising its contractors.

Beyond the reputational damage, being added to the list bars firms from obtaining certain types of loans from Brazilian banks.

The Brazilian government also did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

(Reporting by Fabio Teixeira; Editing by Jan Harvey)