The Forced Labor Working Group (FLWG), an ad hoc group of retail and fashion industries, “proposes a holistic and collaborative multi-faceted framework” for enforcing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) “that will meet U.S. jurisprudence and due process requirements.” The proposal includes keeping a public database of bad actors and the tainted import goods they’re associated with, the FLWG said, in docket DHS-2022-0001. The group was created by the American Apparel and Footwear Association, the National Retail Federation, the Retail Industry Leaders Association and the U.S. Fashion Industry Association.
CBP will prevent entry of merchandise produced or manufactured by Li-Ning Sporting Goods, effective March 14, CBP said in a March 15 news release. "This enforcement action is the result of a CBP investigation indicating Li-Ning Sporting Goods uses North Korean labor in its supply chain," it said. The detention notice is a result of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, which requires the use of North Korean labor in a supply chain to be considered forced labor (see 1711070046). "Pursuant to CAATSA, CBP will detain Li-Ning merchandise at all U.S. ports of entry," CBP said. "Such merchandise will not be entitled to entry unless the importer provides clear and convincing evidence that their merchandise was not produced with convict labor, forced labor, or indentured labor under penal sanctions within 30 days of notice of detention. If the company fails to provide clear and convincing evidence within this timeframe the merchandise may be subject to seizure and forfeiture."
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CBP should recognize imports of goods under the $800 de minimis threshold as entries, as a way to help prevent low value goods made with forced labor from coming into the U.S., the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America said in comments to DHS on implementing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. "By treating the commercial de minimis exemption instead as an entry of merchandise, the Government can continue to promote the administrative ease that section 321 affords legitimate gift and personal use shipments, while also ensuring goods imported under the commercial de minimis exemption are eligible and admissible and pose no threat to our country’s economy, safety, health, or security and particularly are free of forced labor," the trade group said.
The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for CBP will next meet remotely March 31, CBP said in a notice. The meeting will be the first for the newest COAC members. Comments are due in writing by March 28.
Though the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) designates polysilicon as a “high-priority enforcement sector,” the polysilicon produced in Xinjiang, and elsewhere in China, “currently does not meet the extremely high levels of purity required for semiconductor-grade polysilicon,” the Semiconductor Industry Association commented in docket DHS-2022-0001. The comments were in response to a DHS notice on how best to comply with UFLPA measures for preventing goods produced with forced labor in China from being imported into the U.S. CBP, under the direction of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF), is scheduled to begin enforcing the statute’s “rebuttable presumption” measures June 21.
While the consumer tech industry “condemns the use of forced labor” and “unequivocally supports” the Biden administration’s efforts “to end this scourge around the world,” there are concerns with the timing of new requirements, the Consumer Technology Association commented in docket DHS-2022-0001. The comments were due March 10 in response to a January DHS notice on how best to comply with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) by preventing goods produced with forced labor in China from being imported into the U.S.
The U.S. Fashion Industry Association said it is pleased that Uzbekistan has eliminated systemic forced labor from cotton production, and noted that the Cotton Campaign, a coalition of apparel companies, nonprofit organizations and Uzbek civil society activists announced March 10 that they no longer support a global boycott of Uzbek cotton. "We encourage brands and retailers to take a fresh look at sourcing opportunities in Uzbekistan and to work with the Cotton Campaign to maintain responsible sourcing and robust due diligence in Uzbekistan," USFIA said. "We also encourage the Government of Uzbekistan to make further progress in establishing the enabling environment for responsible sourcing -- including the registration of NGOs working to monitor cotton harvests -- in order to address remaining risks to labor and human rights and to assure brands that they can source from Uzbekistan with confidence."
Sheffield Hallam University professor of human rights and contemporary slavery Laura Murphy said CBP needs much more funding to enforce the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, because she does not think companies will cut their ties immediately to China's Xinjiang province as a result of the new law. Murphy, who was interviewed by Hudson Institute senior fellow Nury Turkel on March 9, said she has not yet found a company with production in Xinjiang that can provide clear evidence that it does not employ Uyghur workers who were coerced into taking their jobs.
CBP should take an approach to implementing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act that is different than the current withhold release order regime, the American Association of Exporters and Importers said in comments to DHS. "The solution to forced labor does not lie with seizing goods at time of arrival," the trade group said. "Rather, it lies in timely information about suspected problem parties being shared at the time they are reliably identified."