The Tour de France, biking’s premier global competition, got underway at the end of June…

…Largely ignored until recently have been the exploitative conditions facing the people who build the championship bicycles for manufacturers like Giant, Trek, and Scott.

An investigative report in December by the UK’s Telegraph focused on the poor labor practices of a Malaysian supplier of the Japanese company Shimano which manufactures gears, chains, and pedals for many high-end bicycle models…“Workers at Shimano’s Malaysian supplier, Kwang Li Industry, say they have been subject to physical abuse and threats, unlawful salary deductions and recruitment fees, and unpaid suspension.”…

…Sian Lea, the Business and Human Rights Manager at Anti-Slavery International, observes that the plight of these migrant laborers “bears all the hallmarks of how employers, and others, can exploit migrant workers and trap them in modern slavery.”…

…Giant, the leading Taiwan-based bicycle manufacturing firm, has repeatedly stressed that it complies with Taiwanese law. The company recently told Le Monde Diplomatique: “It is understood that some migrant employees pay recruitment fees to home-country recruiters, but our company is not involved in the negotiation and collection of such fees.” …

…Shimano launched an investigation into the practices of its Malaysian supplier and now says that it is trying to remedy working conditions…