U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) challenged corporate America and celebrities that hawk their products to pledge that they do not rely on slave labor for production. Senator Hawley announced the pledge this morning and he has already called on Nike, LeBron James, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) to take the pledge.
U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is introducing legislation to hold American companies accountable for slave labor in their supply chains. The Slave-Free Business Certification Act increases corporate supply chain disclosure requirements, mandates regular audits, requires Chief Executive Officers to certify that their companies’ supply chains do not rely on forced, slave labor, and creates penalties for firms that fail basic minimum standards for human rights.
Senator Hawley said, “Corporate America and the celebrities that hawk their products have been playing this game for a long time – talk up corporate social responsibility and social justice at home while making millions of dollars off the slave labor that assembles their products. Executives build woke, progressive brands for American consumers, but happily outsource labor to Chinese concentration camps, all just to save a few bucks.
“If corporate America wants to be the face of social change today, they should have to certify they are completely slave-free. Participate in independent audits to verify it and disclose steps to ensure slave labor won’t become part of the equation later on. And if they refuse to do so, they should pay the price. That’s social responsibility.”
At least 80 global companies have been tied to forced Uighur labor in China, from sportswear companies like Nike, Adidas, and Puma to tech giants like Lenovo and Samsung. These issues extend beyond China. For example, Starbucks and Nespresso rely on underpaid Brazilian laborers who are denied basic necessities like food and water.
The Slave-Free Business Certification Act:
Compels companies to disclose the steps they are taking to eradicate forced labor, slavery, and human trafficking from their supply chains
Directs major companies to undergo independent audits to ensure they are not complicit in forced labor and trafficking in their supply chains
Mandates public reports to the Department of Labor on the results of their independent audits
Requires CEOs to certify that their supply chains are free from slave labor or that they have reported all instances of forced labor in their companies.
Today U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced legislation to reauthorize a provision of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (TVPRA) commissioning a two-part comprehensive federal study on trafficking in persons by the Department of Justice. While the TVPRA had called for biennial comprehensive studies on the issue, the only study ever completed and submitted to Congress was in 2009. Senator Hawley’s legislation, cosponsored by Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.)...
Today Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), along with Vice President Mike Pence, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and officials from the Department of Homeland Security, toured the southern border. The group later addressed the crisis at the border during a press conference in McAllen, Texas.
One day after a photo was published of an El Salvadoran father who drowned to death with his 23-month-old daughter, Senator Hawley called Congress’ inaction on the crisis at the border “pathetic” and a “complete dereliction of duty.” Senator Hawley made the comments at a hearing on border security in the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Today, Senator Josh Hawley questioned the Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Kevin McAleenan about the exploitation of children at the southern border during a Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing. Acting Secretary McAleenan confirmed that Congress has refused to provide the resources necessary to end the reign of cartels and smugglers at the southern border and stop the horrific abuses of children, including child recycling rings.