UEI Says It Terminated Agency That Hired Uyghur Laborers

Universal Electronics Inc. vowed to cooperate with three Senate Foreign Relations Committee members who wrote CEO Paul Arling Oct. 19 for answers on who at the company authorized hiring transferred Uyghur laborers at its Chinese factories. Chairman Bob Menendez, D-N.J., ranking member Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., also asked Arling to produce documentation to support UEI assertions that none of its Chinese factories use forced labor. A UEI spokesperson said Thursday: "UEI made the decision last week to end its relationship with the staffing agency that hired these workers based on feedback on how to best secure its supply chain and in light of ongoing regulatory and legislative changes globally." Menendez, Merkley and Rubio accused UEI in the letter of “choosing to turn a blind eye” to forced labor in China. “If true,” they said, “this is a serious failure in your firm’s ethical and fiduciary responsibilities -- and, potentially, your duties under U.S. law."