Should Companies Have to Verify Their Products Weren't Made With Slave Labor?

What’s the story?

• Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) is introducing the Slave-Free Business Certification Act, which would require American companies to audit their supply chains & certify that there is no reliance upon forced labor or slavery, and said:

“If corporate America wants to be the face of social change today, they should have to certify that they are completely slave-free. Participate in independent audits to verify it and disclose steps to ensure slave labor won’t become part of the equation later on. And if they refuse to do so, they should pay the price. That’s social responsibility.”

• The bill’s introduction comes after several prominent businesses have been linked to the use of forced labor from Uyghur Muslims in concentration camps in Xinjiang, China. Hawley’s press release noted:

At least 80 global companies have been tied to forced Uighur labor in China, from sportswear companies like Nike, Adidas, and Puma to tech giants like Lenovo and Samsung. These issues extend beyond China. For example, Starbucks and Nespresso rely on underpaid Brazilian laborers who are denied basic necessities like food and water.

• In early July, U.S. Customs & Border Protection seized a 13 ton shipment of hair weaves & beauty accessories shipped from China that was suspected to have been made from human hair taken from Uyghurs in a concentration camp.

What would the bill do?

• The Slave-Free Business Certification Act would require companies to disclose what they’re doing to eradicate forced labor, slavery, and human trafficking from their supply chains.
• Major companies would be directed to undergo independent audits to ensure they aren’t complicit in forced labor and trafficking in their supply chains. Mandatory public reports would be submitted to the Labor Dept. about the results of the audits.
• CEOs would be required to certify that their supply chains are free from slave labor or that they have reported all instances of forced labor in their companies.

— Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: Coup d’Orielle via Wikimedia / Creative Commons)