Chinese electric carmaker BYD and two of its subcontractors are being sued in Brazil for alleged labor crimes, including human trafficking and modern slavery. The Brazilian Labor Prosecutor’s Office in the state of Bahia filed the lawsuit after rescuing 220 Chinese workers from a factory construction site in Camacari, northeast Brazil. Officials say the workers lived in unsafe and unhealthy conditions. The lawsuit is seeking 257 million reais—about 45.5 million dollars—in damages from the companies involved.
The factory, which was supposed to start operations in March 2025, has now come under heavy legal scrutiny. Prosecutors report that workers were brought to Brazil with promises of fair jobs but were instead forced to live in crowded spaces with poor hygiene. In one case, 31 workers had to share a single toilet. Some workers even had to sleep on wooden planks with no mattresses.
Brazilian law defines slavery-like work as labor that includes debt bondage, poor living conditions, and denial of basic human rights. In this case, the workers’ passports were taken away, making it hard for them to leave. Contracts were written in a way that punished workers if they tried to quit. Reports also show that many lost a large part of their wages—up to 70%—due to unfair deductions and fees. There were also no rest periods, which breaks labor laws in Brazil.
The plant’s construction was stopped by authorities in late 2024 after the investigation began. Officials say the factory’s halt is likely to delay BYD’s production plans in Brazil, which was expected to become the company’s first electric vehicle plant outside of Asia. BYD has not released a new statement since the lawsuit but has claimed in the past that it has “zero tolerance” for labor violations.
BYD, short for Build Your Dreams, is one of the world’s biggest electric car producers. In April, it passed Tesla in electric car sales in Europe for the first time, according to data from Jato Dynamics. BYD has been active in Brazil since 2015 when it opened a plant in São Paulo to make electric bus parts. Since then, Brazil has become BYD’s largest market outside of China.
The lawsuit raises important concerns about how the company handles its global operations. Experts say this case could affect the automaker’s reputation and future expansion plans in Brazil and beyond. Labor rights groups have already called for stronger protections for foreign workers in Brazil.