CORE Closes Two Forced Labor Complaints
The Canada Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise withdrew complaints against Hugo Boss Canada and GobiMin, the agency announced on April 24 and April 25. Both companies participated in "good faith," with GobiMin divesting from a gold mine that allegedly used Uyghur forced labor, and Hugo Boss participating in a confidential dispute settlement process with the parties that filed the complaint against the company and providing a "satisfactory response or remedy to their allegations," a CORE spokesperson said in an emailed news release.
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The CORE began investigating Hugo Boss after a complaint was filed in June 2022 alleging that the company had a relationship with a Chinese supplier that uses Uyghur forced labor, the news release said. After an initial assessment report, the CORE decided to investigate the company (see 2309050041).
Hugo Boss Canada met with the CORE in November 2023 and agreed to resolve the complaint through the agency's "informal mediation services," the CORE said in a final report. The complainants and Hugo Boss signed a non-disclosure agreement and came to a resolution in March, the CORE said.
The CORE recommended that Hugo Boss continue to maintain a "comprehensive approach" to avoid the use of forced labor.
A complaint was filed against GobiMin in a letter dated Nov. 12, 2021, but CORE declined to investigate because the company sold its former subsidiary in Xinjiang (see 2308210048), the agency said in its follow-up report.
The CORE issued recommendations on a responsible exit plan and GobiMin agreed to follow the recommendations, the follow-up report said.
Both of these investigations showed that the CORE is able to have a positive impact "beyond formal investigations" through "dialogue and information sharing," the agency said. The CORE looks forward to resolving more complaints through this "mutually beneficial" process, the agency said.
Hugo Boss Canada and GobiMin didn't respond to our requests for comment.