Good morning! Today, we discuss new allegations against Volkswagen Brazil. Another round of budget freezes. And the imbroglio over fuel taxes.
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Volkswagen faces allegations of using slave labor in the 1980s
Brazil’s Labor Prosecution Office confirmed on Monday that it has subpoenaed executives of Volkswagen Brazil to a hearing on June 14 to discuss allegations that the company used slave labor in the 1970s and 1980s on a farm in the Amazon.
Why it matters. The violations came as part of a development project sponsored by the military government of the time, in yet another example of Volkswagen’s deep ties to the regime.
- Two years ago, the German automaker agreed to pay reparations to victims of the dictatorship for its collaboration with the regime’s political police.
The case. Labor prosecutors say agricultural company CVRC, a Volkswagen subsidiary, ran a 139,000-hectare farm in Santana do Araguaia, in southern Pará. The company operated under a government-sponsored Amazon development program and benefited from massive tax breaks.
- “CVRC had roughly 300 direct employees for...