Hidden Traffic : New Human Trafficking and Child Labor Regulation in Canada with Sean Stephenson
Third Party Ethical Audits
Fraud Eats Strategy - Human Trafficking is Everyone’s Problem: Steps that Organizations Can Take to Disrupt Human Trafficking
The use of forced labor, child labor, or modern slavery practices (collectively “forced labor”) in supply chains is not a new problem in the international trade world; however, many companies remain unaware of forced labor...more
Mining companies operate in many countries where the risks related to the presence in the supply chain of forced and child labor tend to be high. If these companies also carry on certain business activities in Canada...more
As businesses finalize their reports under the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act (the Act) in advance of the May 31, 2024, statutory deadline, Public Safety Canada has updated its...more
On 15 March 2024, the European Council approved the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (“CSDDD” or “Directive”). If approved by the European Parliament and entered into force, the CSDDD will require large EU and...more
In the last few years, changes to the United States enforcement stance on the forced labor import ban authorized by 19 U.S.C. § 1307 and passage of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) have fundamentally changed the...more
On February 23, 2022, the European Commission released a proposal for the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD or the Directive). The Directive aims to mandate both EU and non-EU companies that conduct...more
This law requires many companies that do business in Canada to provide public annual reports on their efforts to eliminate the use of forced labor in their supply chains. Our summary of Canada’s legislation, including the...more
As environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations continue to gain global importance in the context of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), many buyers are requiring human rights in their due diligence processes. As...more
Third parties have posed significant risks to companies for years, but perhaps more so now than ever before. Cyber threats, Russia sanctions, and a new wave of child labor in the United States are just a few risks making...more
Canada is considering implementing new laws regarding supply-chain due diligence and other obligations relating to forced labour and child labour. In late 2021, Canadian Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne introduced Bill S-211, An...more
Courts and legislatures both in the United States and abroad continue to prioritize the eradication of labor trafficking in corporate supply chains, including those in the health care industry. For example, in the United...more
In-person is back! Join us in Amsterdam for the 2023 European Compliance & Ethics Institute! Strengthen your compliance and ethics program by attending our 11th annual European Compliance and Ethics Institute, 20-22 March...more
National and supranational legislatures continue to develop laws requiring employers to conduct due diligence of their operations and those of their business partners in order to address human rights risks such as forced...more
The steady decoupling of the world’s two biggest economies has turned up the heat in the Indo-Pacific, and as great power competition intensifies, tensions are beginning to boil. Decades of economic development and US-led...more
Corporate Obligations to Address Forced Labor in Supply Chains Relevant to You? International organizations like the International Labor Organization, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the...more
The Biden Administration’s interest in reducing the occurrence of forced labor or indentured child labor in the global supply chain, and the parallel goals of corporate social responsibility, are driving increased attention...more
CBP Adds Second Forced Labor Investigations Branch and DHS Publishes Timeline for Actions - Importers should be prepared for increased forced labor actions (including new Withhold Release Orders and product import bans)...more
An assessment of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors has become an integral part of the due diligence review of companies. Such assessment may provide a potential acquirer with a detailed analysis of a...more
Das Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Soziales bringt das Gesetz zu Sorgfaltspflichten in der Lieferkette auf den Weg - bisheriger Goodwill wird zur Pflicht: Ab 2023 werden Unternehmen verpflichtet, Zulieferer und Kunden auf...more
Addressing the responsibility and accountability of companies in relation to their environmental and human rights impact has long been at the top of the agenda at the European level. On 10 March 2021, the European Parliament...more
On 21st January 2021, a roundtable was organised by the Association Française des Juristes d’Entreprises (AFJE), Doctrine and Le Grand Continent to discuss where Business and Human Rights issues stand. the following topic....more
As the world continues to battle against the Covid-19 pandemic, the resulting economic and social stress has brought many human rights issues to the fore, exacerbating systemic issues and generating new challenges. Yet the...more
In a public vote on 29 November 2020, the Swiss electorate rejected the Responsible Business Initiative (the “RBI”). After an intensive ideological campaign, the RBI received 50.7% of the votes but failed to win support in a...more
This summer, one of the UK’s best-known online brands found its supply chain at the center of a high-profile modern slavery investigation. Within hours of the story breaking the company’s share price plummeted, as...more
Key Takeaways - Slave, forced, and child labor is a modern-day reality impacting some 40 million people throughout the world, by some estimates. Such practices are—and have always been—repugnant, and certainly have no place...more