VW's Internal Audit of Its Xinjiang Plant Fails to Prove It Doesn't Use Uyghur Forced Labor

Volkswagen's audit of its Xinjiang plant has come under serious scrutiny following a leaked report indicating significant flaws in the process. While VW initially claimed the audit found no evidence of forced labor, the Financial Times revealed that the auditing firm did not adhere to key aspects of the SA8000 standard, which is supposed to guide social audits. • Confidentiality Breaches: Worker interviews were live-streamed to the law firm’s headquarters, creating an intimidating environment that compromised confidentiality. Experts criticized this approach, stating it rendered the interviews ineffective for verifying conditions...