KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Migrant workers at Malaysian glove maker Brightway Holdings filed a lawsuit in the United States against Kimberly-Clark Corp (KMB.N) and Ansell Ltd (ANN.AX), accusing them of "knowingly profiting" from the alleged use of forced labour at the supplier, according to the complaint seen by Reuters.
In the suit, filed late on Tuesday in the United States, 13 former workers claimed damages from U.S. personal care company Kimberly-Clark and Australian personal protective equipment supplier Ansell in the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia.
According to the complaint, the workers paid high recruitment fees to middlemen, worked long hours with few or no rest days, had their passports taken by the company.
The complaint says public reports on Brightway and other Malaysian glove makers, and violations found by labour audits, were evidence of the two companies' knowledge of the alleged abuses.
Kimberly-Clark did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside of regular U.S. business hours.
Ansell and Brightway said they did not have an immediate comment.
"These companies cannot deny that they had knowledge of forced labour at Brightway," said Terrence Collingsworth, a lawyer from International Rights Advocates representing the workers.
Collingsworth said that before filing the lawsuit, he had proposed mediation with Kimberly-Clark and Ansell to obtain compensation for the workers, but both companies declined.
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