Apparel Trade Groups Seek Stakeholder Working Group on Forced Labor
Nearly 200 unions and nonprofit organizations asked fashion brands “to cut all ties with suppliers implicated in forced labor and end all sourcing from the Uyghur Region, from cotton to finished garments, within twelve months,” a July 23 news release said. The groups criticized a Retail Industry Leaders Association statement that it does not tolerate forced labor, and that conditions in Xinjiang make auditing supply chains difficult. The advocates say that RILA has “offered no credible explanation” as to how apparel brands and retailers can avoid forced labor “while continuing to do business in a region where forced labor is rife.”
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The American Apparel and Footwear Association, the U.S. Fashion Industry Association, the Footwear Retailers and Distributors Association, the National Retail Federation and RILA responded the same day by asking that a multistakeholder working group of labor advocacy groups and apparel companies collaborate with the government “to develop and deploy a collective approach that accurately assesses the problem, identifies constructive solutions to increase transparency, and protects both the rights of workers and the integrity of global supply chains.”
The trade groups said they were also reacting to a new U.S. law directing “companies and individuals selling goods or services or otherwise operating in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region should take steps, including in any public or financial filings, to ensure that (A) their commercial activities are not contributing to human rights violations in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or elsewhere in China; and (B) their supply chains are not compromised by forced labor.”
The advocates also were reacting to a Trump administration business advisory on supply chain risk in that province and including suggestions for due diligence to avoid forced labor (see 2007010040). “Our member companies have long maintained policies and compliance programs that seek to prevent, identify, and mitigate instances of forced labor,” they said.