Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - Volkswagen's supervisory board includes the leader of Germany's powerful IG Metall labour union,...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - Volkswagen's supervisory board includes the leader of Germany's powerful IG Metall labour union, who has questioned whether it is in the carmaker's best interests to continue operating a facility in China's Xinjiang region.
The US, the UK, and other countries called for the International Labour Organization to establish a mission to investigate alleged labour abuses in Xinjiang earlier this month, and urged Beijing to give unrestricted access.
According to IG Metall chairman Joerg Hofmann, there is no proof of human rights abuses at the VW facility.
"However, the overarching question is what it means for the company's reputation to continue to be invested there," Hofmann, who is also deputy chairman of the Volkswagen supervisory board, told the Wolfsburger Nachrichten.
In response to a question from Reuters concerning Hofmann's remark, Volkswagen stated that it is "firmly opposed to forced labour in connection with its business activities worldwide" and guarantees that its standards are followed.
"As a globally active company, the Volkswagen Group stands for individual freedom, fair working conditions, open world trade, economic development, and peaceful coexistence," the company noted, which also announced a reorganisation of its China management team on Friday.
China has disputed accusations of forced labour and genocide against Uyghurs in Xinjiang, and has urged foreign countries not to meddle in China's internal affairs by criticising its activities in the region.
There are no evidence that human or labour rights have been violated at the VW plant, according to Stephan Weil, the premier of Lower Saxony, one of Volkswagen's largest stockholders.
"However, this does not absolve the group of its responsibility to deal intensively with the issue and to thoroughly investigate the charges regarding the human rights situation, which is already underway," he added.
