Labor Dept Requests Comments to Update 3 Child/Forced Labor Reports
The Labor Department's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) is seeking public comments and relevant information to assist it in updating three reports on child and/or forced labor in foreign countries. One report is on the worst forms of child labor; another lists goods believed to be produced by forced and/or child labor; and the third lists products needing Federal contractor certification.
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Comments are due by May 20, 2011.
Seeks Comments on Nature & Extent of Child/Forced Labor, Gov’t Efforts, Etc.
ILAB requests comments or information on the nature and extent of child labor, forced labor, and forced or indentured child labor in the production of goods in foreign countries. It also seeks information, findings, or suggestions on government, industry, or third-party actions and initiatives to address these issues.
The information will be used to assist ILAB in updating the following three reports:
Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor. This report is mandated by the Trade and Development Act of 2000 and provides information on the efforts of certain U.S. trade beneficiary countries to eliminate the worst forms of child labor. The most recent version, which was issued in December 2010, found that child labor persists in India as it lacks a minimum working age; Russia lacks a national action plan against child labor; child labor remains a problem in the seafood industry in Thailand; etc. (See ITT’s Online Archives or 12/21/10 news, 10122128, for BP summary of the 2009 report.)
List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor. This list, which is mandated by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (TVPRA), lists goods from countries that ILAB has reason to believe are produced by forced and/or child labor, in violation of international standards. The 2010 update adds 6 new goods and 12 new countries for a total of 128 goods from 70 countries. (See ITT’s Online Archives or 12/16/10 news, 10121627, for BP summary of the 2010 list.)
List of Products Requiring Federal Contractor Certification as to Forced or Indentured Child Labor. ILAB issues this list pursuant to Executive Order 13126, and it contains a list of products requiring federal contractor certification as they might have been mined, produced, or manufactured by forced or indentured child labor. In a December 2010 initial update, ILAB preliminarily concluded that hand-woven textiles from Ethiopia should be added and charcoal from Brazil should be removed from the list. Until ILAB issues a final determination, the current list, last updated in July 2010 remains valid. (See ITT’s Online Archives or 12/16/10 and 12/22/10 news, 10121636 and 10122253, for BP summaries of the 2010 initial update with a link to the current list.)
(See notice for suggestions on submitting comments, including that data sources be included when possible, that these sources not be older than January 1, 2005, etc.)
Reports and an ILAB press release, dated 12/15/10, available here.
ILAB contact -- Tina McCarter (202) 693-4843
(FR Pub 04/25/11)