Consumers, Investors Play Key Role in Eradicating Forced Labor: Experts

It will require strict law enforcement and due diligence from importers to eliminate the use of forced labor in the U.S. Supply Chain. But, ultimately, the solution may rest on public awareness and investment.

“The vast majority of U.S. companies want to have compliance in this area. I think they are repulsed by the notion that there might be slave labor in their supply chains,” Robert Silvers is the undersecretary for Homeland Security strategy, policy and plans.

But it can be difficult to follow U.S. laws against the importation of goods made with forced labor. The supply chain is increasingly complex as raw materials from various sources may be commingled, and some governments, notably the Chinese Communist Party, are uncooperative, Silvers said during a March 17 forum at Hudson Institute in Washington.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has released new compliance guidelines, a list of prohibited entities, and an interactive dashboard to assist U.S. businesses complying with the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act, (UFLPA), recently enacted. This law targets goods made by Uyghurs, a minor ethnic group from the Xinjiang area of China.

“The goal here is to eradicate forced labor. We’re never going to be able to do that if there are markets that are open to products made with forced labor,” Silvers said.

Public opinion is a powerful weapon in this fight.

“Consumers have shown an interest over time in buying products that are consistent with their values,” Silvers said.

“I think most Americans don’t think about where the T-shirt they’re wearing comes from. That’s not because they’re bad people. It’s an awareness issue.”

Americans would be shocked to discover that their clothes, electronic devices and produce were made in the USA by people who live in poverty “slave conditions,” Silvers said.

DHS is focused on preventing goods from being tainted with forced labor, but he also sees increasing consumer awareness as an additional effort.

“If consumers are aware, that incentivizes businesses to care—and to do more robust due diligence,” Silvers said.

According to Nury Turkel (a Hudson Institute senior fellow and a survivor from a forced labor camp, Xinjiang), consumers have had a significant effect on corporate behavior.

“The consumer has already spoken up,” Turkel spoke out in reference to the 2022 boycott of the Winter Olympics, which was made by TV viewers.

“American and Canadian people responded. As a result, NBC viewership dropped nearly 50 percent. That’s a huge response,” Turkel stated.

“When the consumer speaks out, corporate boardrooms hear and adjust.”

Silvers claimed that investors can influence a company’s behavior.

“There are investors out there that make a point of only investing in companies that have credible and strong due diligence programs around forced labor,” Silvers said.

“That’s not what we do [at DHS], but that’s another complementary, growing movement in the broader ecosystem, in which our societies as a whole can move toward a place where we do not tolerate the prevalence of forced labor in our supply chains.”