The introduction of Bill S-211, An Act to enact the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act and to amend the Customs Tariff (the Bill) aims for greater transparency by forcing businesses with any connection to Canada to disclose the measures actively taken to reduce the risk of forced or child labour within their supply networks. [...] Contextualizing forced labour According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), forced labour represents any form of “work that is performed involuntarily and under the threat of any penalty.” Forced labour is a type of modern slavery and may include child labour, human trafficking, and various forms of coercion such as debt bondage, retention of identity papers or threats of denunciation. [...] The United Kingdom’s Companies Act 2006 introduced the concept of “non-financial reporting” for senior management of companies, which permitted consideration of ESG factors into the operation of the company. [...] The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010, as well as the United Kingdom and Australian Modern Slavery Acts, developed more targeted steps for identifying and addressing modern slavery risks, including reporting requirements pertaining to the operations and supply chain of a company. [...] Bill S-211, forced labour and the Canadian legal landscape: the next steps The Bill passed in the Senate and is currently in committee at the House of Commons.
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- Canada
