Asia’s forced labour bans should fix abuses, not just block goods

First, laws should require good faith efforts to remediate (Opens in new window) findings of abuse before suppliers are dropped. Termination of a supplier relationship should be reserved (Opens in new window) for cases where remediation has failed, or the abuse is severe and ongoing. Asian nations, such as through ASEAN, should agree to a shared remediation standard and recognise one another’s verified results. This could include a reasonable deadline for remediation, to eliminate incentives for indefinite delay.

Second, laws should also require buyers that suspend orders help pay for the remediation. Suspension is often presented as a middle path between staying and leaving, but it can also deprive suppliers of the revenue they need to eliminate abuses. Establishing requirements for a fund financed by buyers proportionate to their share of the supplier’s output could cover lost wages while orders are on hold.

Third, the conditions for lifting import bans should be clear. Once there is independent confirmation that abuse has ended, including workers being paid in full, goods should be able to re-enter the market. As with remediation standards, common conditions could be set across nations so that the same relief applies to all suppliers. Publishing these conditions in advance would give suppliers a clear incentive to fix abuses rather than conceal them.

These recommendations alone will not eliminate forced labour; auditors face their own challenges (Opens in new window), and often miss abuse. Buyers will likely resist costs and push them down to suppliers where possible. Cooperation across jurisdictions is also critical, but difficult to coordinate and maintain. Any conditions for lifting bans must guard against loopholes. These challenges, however, are not reasons to avoid the problem of remediating forced labour.

Asia’s emerging import bans have made forced labour much harder to ignore. But these rules must consider the workers subjected to forced labour, not just the goods they produce. Import bans must be accompanied by clear requirements for remediation, mechanisms to pay for it, and routes for lifting bans where warranted. Failing to do so may stop product flows, but leave workers worse off.