A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE
USE OF ALL FORMS OF CHILD
LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
Report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs
and International Development
Michael Levitt, Chair
Subcommittee on International Human Rights
Anita Vandenbeld, Chair
OCTOBER 2018
42
nd
PARLIAMENT, 1
st
SESSION
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A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF ALL
FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
Report of the Standing Committee on
Foreign Affairs and International Development
Michael Levitt
Chair
Subcommittee on International Human Rights
Anita Vandenbeld
Chair
OCTOBER 2018
42
nd
PARLIAMENT, 1
st
SESSION
NOTICE TO READER
Reports from committee presented to the House of Commons
Presenting a report to the House is the way a committee makes public its findings and recommendations
on a particular topic. Substantive reports on a subject-matter study usually contain a synopsis of the
testimony heard, the recommendations made by the committee, as well as the reasons for those
recommendations.
To assist the reader:
A glossary of terms used in this report is available on page 45
iii
STANDING COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CHAIR
Michael Levitt
VICE-CHAIRS
Hon. Erin O’Toole
Hélène Laverdière
MEMBERS
Ziad Aboultaif
Hon. Andrew Leslie*
Leona Alleslev
Raj Saini
Frank Baylis
Jati Sidhu
Pam GoldSmith-Jones*
Anita Vandenbeld
Kamal Khera*
Borys Wrzesnewskyj
OTHER MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT WHO PARTICIPATED
Jamie Schmale
CLERKS OF THE COMMITTEE
Angela Crandall
Erica Pereira
*
Non-voting member, pursuant to Standing Order 104(5).
iv
LIBRARY OF PARLIAMENT
Parliamentary Information and Research Service
Allison Goody, Analyst
Brian Hermon, Analyst
Scott McTaggart, Analyst
v
SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL
HUMAN RIGHTS
CHAIR
Anita Vandenbeld
VICE-CHAIRS
David Sweet
Cheryl Hardcastle
MEMBERS
David Anderson
Peter Fragiskatos
OTHER MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT WHO PARTICIPATED
Pam Damoff
Ali Ehsassi
Hélène Laverdière
Paul Lefebvre
Michael Lewitt
Irene Mathyssen
Hon. John McKay
vi
CLERKS OF THE SUBCOMMITTEE
Naaman Sugrue
Elizabeth Kingston
LIBRARY OF PARLIAMENT
Parliamentary Information and Research Service
Karine Azoulay, Analyst
Brendan Naef, Analyst
Alexandra Smith, Analyst
vii
THE STANDING COMMITTEE ON
FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND INTERNATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
has the honour to present its
NINETEENTH REPORT
Pursuant to the motion adopted by the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and
International Development on Thursday, February 4, 2016, and the motion adopted by the
Subcommittee on Thursday, May 18, 2017, the Subcommittee has studied child labour and modern
slavery.
Your Committee has adopted the report, which reads as follows:
ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SUMMARY .......................................................................................................................................................... 1
LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................................................................................. 5
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF ALL FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN
SUPPLY CHAINS ...................................................................................................................................... 7
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 7
THE SCOPE AND PREVALENCE OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS .................. 9
Children’s Participation in Supply Chains.................................................................... 14
Garment Supply Chains in South and Southeast Asia ...................................... 15
Seafood and Fishing Industries in Southeast Asia ............................................. 16
ERADICATING CHILD LABOUR BY SUPPORTING AND PROTECTING
FAMILIES ......................................................................................................................................... 17
Decent Work for Adults ....................................................................................................... 18
Social Protections for Adults and Children.................................................................. 19
Access to High-Quality Education ................................................................................... 19
Law Enforcement .................................................................................................................. 20
Addressing Child Labour through Canadian International Assistance ............ 20
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY ............................................................................... 23
Corporate Social Responsibility Guidelines and Voluntary Initiatives ............. 24
The Limits of Voluntary Initiatives and the Need for Legislation ....................... 27
SUPPLY CHAIN LEGISLATION IN OTHER JURISDICTIONS........................................... 29
Supply Chain Transparency Legislation with Reporting Requirements.......... 30
Legislation with Due Diligence Requirements ........................................................... 31
Learning Lessons from Other Jurisdictions ................................................................. 32
What Human Rights Violations should be the Focus of Legislation? ......... 33
To which Companies should Transparency Legislation Apply? .................. 33
Should Positive Due Diligence Obligations be Included? ................................ 34
x
How to Ensure High-Quality and Comparable Disclosures? ......................... 35
SUPPLY CHAIN TRANSPARENCY IN THE CANADIAN CONTEXT............................... 36
Broadly Applicable Disclosure Requirements ........................................................... 38
Import Restrictions ............................................................................................................... 40
Responsible Sourcing in Public Procurement ............................................................ 42
CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................................. 43
Glossary ............................................................................................................................................................ 45
Appendix A: List of Witnesses ................................................................................................................ 47
Appendix B: List of Briefs ......................................................................................................................... 49
Request for Government Response ..................................................................................................... 51
SUMMARY
Child labour is defined as work that is mentally, physically, socially or morally harmful to
children, and that interferes with their ability to receive an education. Whether or not
work can be called child labour depends on a child’s age, the type of work and the
working conditions. Child labour is outlawed in some form in virtually every jurisdiction
in the world. The international community has made it a priority to eliminate the worst
forms of child labour, including hazardous work likely to harm children’s health, safety or
morals, but also slavery, forced labour and human trafficking. Nevertheless, child labour
remains widespread—in 2016, one in 10 children engaged in some form of child labour.
Progress in reducing its prevalence has been measurable but uneven and, according to
the International Labour Organization (ILO), has plateaued since 2012. Child labour most
often occurs at the lowest tiers of the supply chain, out of sight of buyers, labour
inspectors, and ultimately, consumers. The garment and seafood industries are at a
particularly high risk for using child labour. In recent years, in response to growing
demand by civil society and the private sector, other national and state-level
jurisdictions have used legislation to motivate the private sector to take action.
In light of these developments, the Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the
House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International
Development (the Subcommittee) undertook a study on child labour in supply chains in
November and December 2017. The Subcommittee received testimony from
representatives from non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the private sector,
academics, the ILO, and Government of Canada officials. The Subcommittee received a
high volume of written briefs, indicating Canadian and international civil society’s strong
interest in how Canada can act to combat the use of child labour in supply chains.
Children often work because their families’ livelihoods depend on it. Poverty,
vulnerability and crisis create difficult economic choices for caregivers—who themselves
may be children. Witnesses told the Subcommittee that child labour can be reduced by:
ensuring that caregivers—especially women—have access to decent work and are free
of exploitative circumstances such as forced labour; enhancing social protections;
improving access to quality education; strengthening justice systems; and combatting
corruption. The Government of Canada, chiefly via Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and
Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), implements its international
commitments to address child labour through development assistance and by including
labour obligations and technical assistance in free trade agreements. The Subcommittee
recommends that the Government of Canada systematically focus on eliminating all
forms of child labour, including by enhancing its support for programs that target child
2
labour’s root causes, particularly among groups and within regions in which progress has
stalled. In particular, the Government of Canada should combat the use of child labour
by taking advantage of opportunities to enhance access to quality education for children
and adults, as well as to assist states in building their capacity to hold those who would
perpetuate the use of child labour to account. The Subcommittee also recommends that
the Government of Canada include a discussion of child labour and forced labour in its
free trade negotiations.
Voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) guidelines and initiatives, developed at
the international, national and industry level, have proliferated in recent years. Canada
has implemented an Extractive Sector CSR Strategy, whose principles could be applied to
other sectors. Despite the progress made by certain industries, including the Canadian
mining sector and the global chocolate industry, witnesses identified persistent
challenges. For example, companies’ internal audits usually extend to only the first tier
of production and capture just a single point in time, while human rights violations such
as child labour tend to exist further down the supply chain and represent an ongoing
issue. Likewise, when best practices are not disseminated, the result is an uneven
playing field for businesses. The Subcommittee thus recommends that the Government
of Canada enhance its support to Canadian businesses abroad to build their capacity to
monitor their supply chains for child labour and to share best practices.
In recent years, other jurisdictions have introduced legislation to galvanize the private
sector to eliminate forced labour, human trafficking and other forms of exploitation,
including child labour, from supply chains. California and the United Kingdom (U.K.)
passed legislation in 2010 and 2015, respectively, requiring businesses over a certain
size to disclose what efforts, if any, they have made to end the use of forced labour,
human trafficking and other forms of exploitation in their supply chains. Australia has
committed to passing similar legislation. More recent legislative initiatives in France
(passed in 2017) and, potentially, the Netherlands go further, requiring large companies
to identify risks and develop due diligence strategies. The French legislation targets a
broad array of human rights violations as well as harm to health and the environment.
The Dutch bill focuses specifically on child labour. Transparency and due diligence
legislation have already affected Canadian companies operating in these jurisdictions.
Given that legislation in other jurisdictions is relatively new, its effectiveness is not
yet clear. However, witnesses provided assessments of the relative strengths and
weaknesses of such legislation. They noted that supply chain legislation should address
not only child labour but also forced labour or labour rights more broadly. Witnesses
considered whether legislation should apply to specific sectors or all businesses, and the
size of businesses subject to reporting and/or due diligence requirements. Witnesses
3
compared the effectiveness of legislation requiring disclosures of efforts to reduce the
use of child labour in supply chains, and legislation requiring that efforts be made.
Transparency and due diligence legislation both give an important role to civil society
and consumers to reward socially responsible behaviour. Witnesses thus stressed the
importance of ensuring that disclosures are of high quality and readily comparable.
Government officials informed the Subcommittee that an interdepartmental working
group, which includes ESDC and GAC, has been actively studying the development of
supply chain legislation for over a year. Canada’s constitutional division of powers means
that existing models cannot be neatly transposed into the Canadian context. ESDC views
supply chain transparency or due diligence legislation as the joint responsibility of the
federal and provincial governments. Canada’s constitutional division of powers shaped
witnesses’ suggestions, but all agreed that the federal government should take concrete
action as Canada risks “falling behind.”
With due consideration for Canada’s constitutional division of powers, the
Subcommittee recommends that the Government of Canada advance legislative and
policy measures to further motivate businesses to eliminate the use of all forms of child
labour in their supply chains. The Government of Canada will have the benefit of
evaluating models chosen by like-minded states. The diversity of ideas presented by
witnesses reflected a variety of potential avenues to achieve compliance in the Canadian
context. Witnesses considered the desirability, or lack thereof, of establishing a criminal
offence for companies that do not meet disclosure requirements; others discussed
imposing disclosure obligations on importers or exporters, corporations established
pursuant to the Canada Business Corporations Act, and federally regulated industries.
Witnesses also discussed a prohibition on the import of goods produced or
manufactured using child labour, an approach already taken by the U.S. They also
considered potential changes to procurement policies to require suppliers to certify that
their supply chain is free of child labour. The Subcommittee recommends that the
Government of Canada consider how to use its import regime and procurement policies
to incent businesses to eliminate the use of child labour in their supply chains.
There is no single “silver bullet” in the fight against child labour, which takes many
forms. Canada has already taken the first steps towards the elimination of child labour in
supply chains. Nevertheless, global progress to eliminate the use of child labour has
stalled. The time to take more concerted action, in the form of legislative and policy
initiatives that motivate businesses to end the use of child labour, is now.
5
LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS
As a result of their deliberations, committees may make recommendations which they
include in their reports for the consideration of the House of Commons or the Government.
Recommendations related to this study are listed below.
Recommendation 1 – Prioritizing the Elimination of Child Labour and Forced
Labour in Canada’s International Assistance
That the Government of Canada make the elimination of all forms of child
labour and forced labour a specific goal in its international assistance spending,
and a metric through which to evaluate its international assistance policy. We
encourage the Government of Canada to actively support programming to
address the root causes of child labour and forced labour, particularly among
groups and regions where progress has stalled. ........................................................ 23
Recommendation 2 – Improving Access to Quality Education for Children
and Adults
That the Government of Canada continue to work with its international
partners to increase the quality and accessibility of education for children and
adults affected by child and forced labour, with a specific emphasis on
vocational training and entrepreneurship. ................................................................ 23
Recommendation 3 – Supporting Law Enforcement and Judicial Systems
That the Government of Canada invest in the provision of training and
resources for law enforcement, as well as the capacity of judicial systems to
bring those responsible for the proliferation of child labour to justice, where
states are open to such assistance. ........................................................................... 23
Recommendation 4 – Including Discussion of Child Labour and Forced Labour in
all Free Trade Negotiations
That the Government of Canada include discussion of child labour and forced
labour in its free trade negotiations, including an assessment of progress made
in eliminating the use of child labour in the supply chains of the country in
question. .................................................................................................................. 23
6
Recommendation 5 – Building Capacity of Canadian Businesses to Monitor
their Supply Chains
That the Government of Canada develop a strategy to incent businesses to
thoroughly and continually monitor their supply chains for the use of child
labour and forced labour, and to share best practices. The strategy should
include tools, guidance and other forms of support, particularly for small and
medium enterprises. ................................................................................................ 27
Recommendation 6 – Advancing Initiatives to Motivate Businesses to Eliminate
Child and Forced Labour in their Supply Chains
That the Government of Canada develop legislative and policy initiatives that
motivate businesses to eliminate the use of any form of child labour in their
global supply chains, and that empower consumers and investors to engage
meaningfully on this important issue. The Government of Canada should draw
on lessons learned by jurisdictions that have implemented supply chain
legislation. The federal government should involve provincial and territorial
leadership, the private sector, civil society and the broader public as much as
possible to draft and implement legislation that is constitutionally sound,
effective, and well-understood. ................................................................................ 43
Recommendation 7 – Examining Canada’s Import Regime and Procurement
Policies as Levers to Eliminate the Use of Child Labour
That the Government of Canada consider how to use Canada’s import regime
as well as its public procurement policies to incentivize businesses to eliminate
the use of any form of child labour in their supply chains. ......................................... 43
7
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF ALL
FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
INTRODUCTION
Child labour is defined as work that is mentally, physically, socially or morally harmful to
children, and that interferes with their ability to attend school.
1
Whether or not work
can be called child labour depends on a child’s age, the type of work and the conditions
under which it is carried out. Some form of child labour is outlawed in virtually every
jurisdiction in the world.
2
The international community has made it a priority to
eliminate the “worst forms of child labour,” which includes hazardous work likely to
harm children’s health, safety or morals, and slavery-like practices such as forced
labour.
3
Nevertheless, the use of child labour, including in its worst forms, remains
widespread—in 2016, 152 million, or one in 10, children engaged in some form of child
labour.
4
While there has been measurable progress in reducing the prevalence of child
labour, it has been uneven, and the decline of child labour has stalled.
5
Child labour is integrated into supply chains—networks of businesses, people, activities,
information and resources involved in producing or distributing goods or deliver services
from a supplier to a consumer—and reduces the cost of production.
6
Child labour most
often occurs at the lowest tiers of the supply chain, out of sight of buyers, inspectors and
ultimately, consumers.
7
In recent years, jurisdictions around the world have moved past
voluntary corporate social responsibility initiatives, using legislation to motivate the
1
International Labour Organization [ILO], What is child labour.
2
ILO, “Eliminating the Worst Forms of Labour: A practical guide to ILO Convention No. 182,” Handbook for
Parliamentarians No.3-2002, p. 16.
3
ILO, Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), art. 3.
4
Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour: Frequently Asked Questions, p. 4. Their results are based
on the extrapolation from 105 national household surveys that cover more than 1,100 million children
between 5 and 17 years.
5
Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the House of Commons Committee on Foreign Affairs and
International Development [SDIR], Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1310 & 1350 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence,
28 November 2017, 1325 (Lewchuk); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1305 (McQuade) & 1325 (Becker).
6
UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, November 2017 [Written Brief], p. 3.
7
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1301, 1315 & 1340 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1325
(Lewchuk); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman).
8
private sector to take action and equip civil society with the tools to hold the private
sector to account.
In light of these developments, the Subcommittee on International Human Rights of
the House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International
Development (the Subcommittee) undertook a study on child labour in supply chains
in November and December 2017. The purpose of this study is to examine options to
eliminate the use of all forms of child labour in the mainstream private sector. The
Subcommittee considered child labour in all of its forms. Unless otherwise specified,
in this report, the term child labour is used in the most expansive form possible,
encompassing otherwise permissible work that interferes with a child’s education,
work in hazardous conditions, and slavery-like practices such as forced labour. The
Subcommittee received testimony from a diverse group of witnesses. This group
included a representative of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and
representatives of several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) dedicated to
eliminating the use of child labour in supply chains. Some of these NGOs were
established by groups of business enterprises. In addition, representatives from Global
Affairs Canada (GAC) and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) appeared
as witnesses. Representatives from other government departments responded to
written questions submitted by the Subcommittee. Additionally, in a demonstration of
the importance of the subject of this study to a broad spectrum of Canadians, the
Subcommittee received numerous written briefs.
This report begins with a discussion of the scope and prevalence of child labour in supply
schains and an analysis of its root causes. This discussion includes consideration of two
case-studies: first, garment supply chains in South and Southeast Asia, and second,
fishing and seafood processing in Southeast Asia. The report then continues with an
assessment of current voluntary measures taken by corporations to address child labour
in their supply chains, followed by an outline of supply chain legislation in other
jurisdictions. The report concludes with lessons drawn from measures taken by other
jurisdictions and how such legislation could be applied in the Canadian context.
On the basis of witness testimony, the Subcommittee makes seven recommendations to
the Government of Canada. The Government of Canada should systematically focus on
eliminating all forms of child labour, including by enhancing its support for programs
that target root causes, particularly among groups and within regions in which progress
has stalled. In particular, the Government of Canada should support projects that aim to
improve quality and access to education, for both children and adults, with a specific
emphasis on vocational training and entrepreneurship. The Government of Canada
should also take opportunities to partner with other states to provide training for law
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
ALL FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
9
enforcement and the judiciary to bring those responsible for child labour to justice. The
Government of Canada should also include discussions and thorough assessments of the
use of child labour in countries with which Canada is negotiating a trade agreement. In
addition, the Subcommittee recommends that the Government of Canada incent the
private sector to properly monitor their supply chains for child labour and to share best
practices, including by developing tools to enable the private sector to do so. The
Subcommittee echoes testimony and written briefs by recommending that the
Government of Canada develop legislative and policy initiatives that motivate businesses
to eliminate all forms of child labour in their supply chains. In doing so, the Government
of Canada should learn from other jurisdictions that have implemented broad legislation
imposing either disclosure or due diligence requirements on businesses. The federal
government should involve provincial and territorial leadership, the private sector, civil
society and the broader public as much as possible to draft and implement legislation
that is constitutionally sound, effective, and well-understood. Last, the Subcommittee
recommends that the Government of Canada consider how to use Canada’s import
regime as well as its public procurement policies to incent businesses to reduce the use
of child labour in their supply chains.
Canada is viewed worldwide as a pioneer in the protection of human rights, yet it risks
falling behind as other jurisdictions implement concrete measures to tackle child labour
in supply chains. The Government of Canada must prioritize the elimination of all forms
of child labour in supply chains, and ensure that it engages with key stakeholders,
including the private sector, civil society, other governments, and international
organizations, in the development of measures to fight this scourge.
THE SCOPE AND PREVALENCE OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY
CHAINS
Together, ILO Convention 182, the Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate
Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour (Worst Forms of Child
Labour Convention) and the ILO’s Convention 138, the Convention concerning Minimum
Age for Admission to Employment (Minimum Age Convention) form the framework for
defining child labour by establishing minimum ages for employment and acceptable
working conditions.
8
Canada ratified these conventions in 2016 and 2000, respectively.
9
The minimum age of employment is tied to the end of compulsory schooling, and is
8
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1320 & 1335 (Smith) & 1335 (Evans); World Vision Canada, Written
Brief, November 2017 [Written Brief], pp. 4-5.
9
ILO, “Ratifications for Canada,” NORMLEX.
10
generally set at 15 years old.
10
States where “the economy and educational facilities are
insufficiently developed” may set their minimum age of employment at 14 years old.
11
Children over 12 years of age may engage in light work which does not interfere with
their education. In some cases, such work may even be beneficial to their development.
All working children under 12 years of age are considered to be engaged in
child labour.
12
Unlike the Minimum Age Convention, the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention does
not make age distinctions in its definitions. Its provisions are applicable to all persons
under the age of eighteen. The Worst Forms of Child Labour convention calls for the
elimination of children’s participation in hazardous work, defined as work that exposes
children to abuse; takes place underground, underwater, at dangerous heights or in
confined spaces; involves the use of dangerous equipment or heavy loads; exposes
children to health hazards such as toxic substances or extreme temperatures; or involves
work under difficult conditions including long hours or unreasonable confinement at a
work site.
13
In 2016, one in 10 children engaged in some form of child labour while
one in 20 children were engaged in the subcategory of child labour known as
hazardous work.
14
The Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention also calls for the elimination of slavery or
slavery-like practices, including the sale or trafficking of children, or subjecting children
to debt bondage and forced labour.
15
Human trafficking is defined in the Protocol to
Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons of the United Nations Convention
Against Transnational Organized Crime as “the recruitment, transportation, transfer,
harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms
of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position
of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the
consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of
10
ILO, Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment, 1973 (No. 138), art. 2; Alliance 8.7,
2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour: Frequently Asked Questions, p. 3.
11
ILO, Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment, 1973 (No. 138), art. 2(4).
12
Ibid., arts. 2-3.
13
ILO, Recommendation concerning the prohibition and immediate action for the elimination of the worst
forms of child labour, 1999 (No. 190), art. 3. See also: SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1310, 1320 &
1335 (Smith) & 1335 (Evans); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1305 (Messenger); World Vision Canada,
Written Brief, p. 5.
14
Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour: Frequently Asked Questions, p. 4. Their results are
based on the extrapolation from 105 national household surveys that cover more than 1,100 million
children between 5 and 17 years.
15
ILO, Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), art. 3.
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
ALL FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
11
exploitation.”
16
Exploitation includes forced labour or slavery-like practices, among other
forms.
17
Forced labour is “all work or service which is exacted from any person under
the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself
voluntarily.”
18
In 2016, 4.3 million children were involved in forced labour, though
Mr. Benjamin Smith, the Senior Officer for Child Labour with the ILO, cautioned that this
is an underestimation given difficulties with detection.
19
The most common form of
forced labour is debt bondage, which can be intergenerational—children may work with
their parents, or be sent to work in the shops, factories or home of a creditor to whom
their parents are indebted.
20
These forms of exploitation are generally understood as
falling under the umbrella of “modern slavery,” a term which does not have an
internationally accepted definition.
21
While the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
also prioritizes the elimination of children’s involvement in prostitution, pornography
and drug trafficking, these important issues lie outside the scope of the
Subcommittee’s study.
22
Children work because their survival and that of their families depend on it. Mr. Smith
and Dr. Aidan McQuade, Special Advisor to Anti-Slavery International, emphasized that
when poverty or vulnerability leave a family without any alternatives, a child’s ability to
earn an income or otherwise contribute to a household may outweigh the perceived
benefits of education.
23
Witnesses agreed that poverty is a root cause of child labour.
24
Vulnerability also arises from social norms that entrench inequality, social exclusion,
16
United Nations [UN], Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and
Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, UNTS
vol. 2237, 2000, art.3.
17
Ibid.
18
ILO, Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No.29), art. 2. See also: SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1310
(Smith); World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 5.
19
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1310 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1320 (Lewchuk);
World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 6. See also: Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour:
Frequently Asked Questions, p. 4. This figure includes not only forced labour in industry or domestic work,
but also sexual exploitation and forced labour imposed by state authorities.
20
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1310 (Smith); ILO, Global estimates of modern slavery: Forced labour
and forced marriage, 2016.
21
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1330 (Lewchuk); UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, November 2017, p. 3.
22
ILO, Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), art. 3. On 15 February 2018, SDIR tabled a
report entitled, “A Global Fight: Sex Trafficking in South Asia,” which addresses some of these issues.
23
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1340 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1320 & 1340
(McQuade).
24
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Chorley) & 1355 (Lewchuk); SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017,
1335 (Beauséjour); World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 5.
12
discrimination and conflict.
25
Ms. Cindy Berman, Head of Modern Slavery Strategy for
the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), noted that the poorest families “come from
communities that are subject to discrimination on the basis of their caste, race,
ethnicity, or [religion].”
26
Displacement also heightens the risk that a child will engage in child labour.
Displacement interrupts education, and can lead to family separation, thereby creating
child-headed households. Displacement also makes children more vulnerable to
traffickers.
27
Mr. Simon Chorley, Deputy Director of International Programs at UNICEF
Canada, noted that this is the case in refugee camps such as those in Jordan, where
adults are not permitted to work or to leave the camp, and where unaccompanied
children are vulnerable to traffickers. Displacement following natural disasters or
disasters caused by human activity has led to spikes in child trafficking. Mr. Chorley
noted such increases among the Rohingya after fleeing persecution in Myanmar for
Bangladesh, and following typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
28
The Government of Canada has signed on to numerous international obligations and
political commitments to act to end child labour, forced labour, and other forms of
exploitation. The rights of children to be educated and free from exploitation are
protected through a wide variety of United Nations (UN) conventions, including the
Convention on the Rights of the Child.
29
In September 2015, Canada was among
180 countries to adopt a non-binding commitment to achieving the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development, which is listed as a series of Sustainable Development Goals
and Targets.
30
Target 8.7 is to “take immediate and effective measures to eradicate
forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and
25
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman); SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1335 (Wilson) & 1350
(Bosma Kooman); World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 5.
26
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman).
27
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1315 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1310 (Chorley);
UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 4.
28
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1310 (Chorley); UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 4.
29
International Commission of Jurists Canada, Written Brief, 21 November 2017 [ICJ Canada, Written Brief],
p. 3. See: UN General Assembly, Convention on the Rights of the Child, art. 32. See also: International Labour
Conference, Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, 1998; UN General Assembly,
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, art. 8; UN General Assembly, International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, art. 7; UN General Assembly, Convention against Transnational
Organised Crime, art. 2; UN General Assembly, Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in
Persons, Especially Women and Children of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized
Crime; UN General Assembly, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women,
art. 6, and others.
30
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1325 (Evans); UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 7.
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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13
elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child
soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms.”
31
Child labour has been in decline since 2000. By 2016, total child labour was reduced
by 38%, from 246 million to 152 million children. Hazardous child labour was reduced
by 58%, from 171 to 73 million. However, progress has been uneven, and the decline has
slowed since 2012.
32
Some groups have been left behind. Sub-Saharan Africa, for
example, witnessed a rise in child labour between 2012 and 2016, unlike the rest of the
world.
33
Twenty percent of all children in sub-Saharan Africa are involved in child
labour.
34
Virtually no progress was made globally between 2012 and 2016 to end child
labour amongst children under 12 years of age, even though they compose half of all
children in child labour and one quarter of children engaged in hazardous work.
35
The
decline in the number of children in child labour and hazardous work among girls was
only half that of boys from 2012 to 2016, even though Ms. Kennedy noted that girls
involved in vulnerable situations share the same root causes of poverty, family debt, lack
of education and lack of economic opportunity.
36
Furthermore, there has been no
change in the number of children subject to forms of modern slavery.
37
Ms. Becker noted that child labour persists due to companies’ “weak human rights
policies, insufficient assessment and monitoring of risks in their supply chains,
weaknesses in preventing or mitigating human rights abuses, insufficient monitoring,
and lack of public reporting on the steps they're taking to address these abuses.”
38
Mr. Smith of the ILO posited, “[i]t may be that we’ve reached the low-hanging fruit, in a
31
UN, “Goal 8: Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all,”
Sustainable Development Goals.
32
Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour: Frequently Asked Questions, pp. 5-6. See also: SDIR,
Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1310 & 1350 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1325 (Lewchuk);
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1305 (McQuade) & 1325 (Becker).
33
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1350 (Smith); Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour:
Results and trends, 2012-2016, 19 September 2017, p. 29.
34
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1335 (Smith).
35
UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 4. See also: Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour: Frequently
Asked Questions, p. 5.
36
SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1310 (Kennedy); World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 6. See also:
Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour: Results and trends, 2012-2016, 19 September 2017,
pp. 42-43. The percentage decline of boys in child labour between 2012 and 2016 was 12.3% compared to
6% for girls. Alliance 8.7 also notes that girls’ widespread participation in domestic child labour is
underreported.
37
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1305 (McQuade).
38
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1310 (Becker).
14
sense, and now we’re dealing with child labour that is really entrenched.”
39
Other
witnesses agreed—past measures, including international obligations and national
prohibitions, have been insufficient to eradicate child labour.
40
Mr. Smith warned,
“without accelerated progress…we won’t reach the sustainable development goal target
of the elimination of all forms of child labour by 2025.”
41
Children’s Participation in Supply Chains
In the words of Mr. Michael Messenger, President and CEO of World Vision Canada,
children are pulled into child labour by an “insatiable [consumer] demand for new, low-
cost goods and corporations’ desire for rapid production and cheap labour.”
42
A large
proportion of child labour occurs at the input level of supply chains.
43
Child labour, in all
of its forms, is most often used in the informal economy, at the lowest rungs of a supply
chain, and largely out of sight of buyers or labour inspectors.
44
According to the ILO,
in 2016, 69% of children engaged in child labour worked with their family in small
operations. Twenty-seven percent of children in child labour were paid workers working
for non-family employers. The remaining 4% of children were self-employed.
45
Integrating children into supply chains is also the safest way for traffickers to profit from
their exploitation. Mr. Peter Talibart, a labour lawyer at a London (U.K.) law firm,
estimated that global profits from human trafficking could amount to US$400 billion
annually, and will continue to grow.
46
Child labour is heavily concentrated in the agricultural sector, be it for subsistence or
commercial farming. According to the ILO, 71% of all child labour occurs in the fishing,
forestry, livestock herding and aquaculture industries.
47
In particular, the use of child
labour has been widely documented in the harvesting of cocoa, coffee and tobacco, and
cotton picking and spinning for garment manufacturers. According to Ms. Jo Becker,
39
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1350 (Smith).
40
Ibid., 1325 (Evans); ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 4.
41
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1325 (Smith).
42
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1305 (Messenger).
43
Ibid., 1325 (Lewchuk).
44
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1301, 1315 & 1340 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017,
1310 (Berman).
45
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1310 (Smith).
46
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1325 (Talibart).
47
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1305 (Becker); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman);
Alliance 8.7, 2016 Global Estimates of Child Labour: Frequently Asked Questions, p. 5.
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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15
Advocacy Director for Children’s Rights at Human Rights Watch, agriculture is one of the
most hazardous sectors of work for children, who work for long hours with sharp tools
and heavy machinery, and who may be exposed to toxic pesticides and extreme heat.
48
The potential complexity and often borderless character of supply chains means that
Canadian consumers and companies could unknowingly purchase and sell goods made
using child labour. A recent World Vision Canada study concluded that 1,200 companies
operating in Canada imported goods at risk of being produced by child labour or forced
labour in 2015, worth a total of approximately C$34 billion.
49
This represents a 31%
increase since 2012.
50
To better understand how child labour is used in supply chains,
the Subcommittee requested testimony regarding high-risk supply chains in the garment
industry, and the fishing and seafood industry.
Garment Supply Chains in South and Southeast Asia
Children work at all stages of garment supply chains, including producing cotton seed,
growing cotton, spinning yarn in mills, sewing, weaving, embroidering, and finishing
garments in factories and home workshops.
51
Mr. Smith observed that there are over
100 million cotton farms in the developing world smaller than 0.01 square kilometers in
size, and are operated by families. He noted that transparency regarding labour practices
decreases drastically among suppliers who are closer to the input level of the garment
supply chain—including cotton farms, spinning mills and ginning facilities. He also noted
that, in general, far less information is available about garment supply chains destined
for domestic markets, which in countries such as India can account for the vast majority
of production.
52
In India, the cotton-spinning sector employs half a million workers,
mainly young women working in poor conditions.
53
The Subcommittee learned that,
over the past 20 years, there has been improvement in imposing the minimum age of
employment in garment supply chains. This improvement has mostly taken place at the
top of supply chains, among producers of ready-made garments destined for export.
However, challenges remain in eliminating hazardous labour.
54
48
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1325 (Lewchuk); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1305 (Becker).
49
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1305 (Messenger); World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 2.
50
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1305 (Messenger).
51
SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1305 (Kennedy).
52
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1320-1325 (Smith).
53
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman).
54
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1320 (Smith); UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 8.
16
Mr. Chorley discussed textile supply chains in Bangladesh and Vietnam, the second and
fifth largest exporters of garments worldwide. Despite these countries’ progress in
eliminating the use of child labour in international supply chains, domestic supply chains
continue to have a “very worrying prevalence of child labour.”
55
Mr. Chorley found that
in one particular area of Dhaka, almost 60% of 169,000 workers polled were less than
18 years old. He concluded that lack of decent working conditions for adults encourages
children, particularly those between the ages of 15 and 17 years, to work. Contributing
factors include the lack of maternity protection, limited child care options or
breastfeeding support; long hours and low wages; poor health, water, sanitation and
hygiene conditions; and the unavailability of high-quality education.
56
Ms. Becker
reported similarly difficult working conditions in Cambodia, where the majority of
women work over 60 hours per week and face punitive measures if they refuse to
work overtime.
57
Seafood and Fishing Industries in Southeast Asia
The Subcommittee heard testimony on the fishing and seafood processing sector in
Southeast Asia, particularly Thailand. According to Ms. Berman from ETI, progress is
being made in reducing the use of child and forced labour in this sector, albeit slowly.
58
Ms. Berman noted that, in the case of the fishing and seafood industry, “the worst
exploitation is to be found in deep-sea paired trawlers that are far from land, some of
them 24-7 operations that don't dock, even at port.”
59
Many vessels never return to land
for inspection.
60
In 2016, Human Rights Watch interviewed 250 current and former workers in the Thai
fishing industry. Many described situations of forced labour, including debt bondage,
wage withholding programs, and the seizure of identity documents. Some individuals
reported working up to 23 hours per day.
61
In a 2017 project in Thailand, the ILO
found “little evidence of child labour” after interviewing 434 seafood fishermen in
55
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1310 (Chorley).
56
Ibid.
57
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1310 (Becker).
58
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman).
59
Ibid.
60
Ibid.
61
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1305 (Becker).
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17
11 provinces.
62
Research focused on shrimp and seafood processing hubs, by contrast,
has demonstrated that child labour is present, and that children in the processing
industry face hazardous conditions and are twice as likely as children working in other
industries to sustain injuries.
63
Migrant children, mostly from Myanmar and Cambodia,
work longer hours than Thai children. One third of migrant children do not attend school
as a result of a combination of challenges including household debt, childcare
commitments for siblings or parental mobility.
64
In Ms. Berman’s assessment, Thai labour laws are insufficiently enforced, particularly in
relation to fishing vessels operating outside Thai waters or otherwise beyond the reach
of Thai authorities. The worst offenders, she suggested, are Thai companies.
65
Mr. Smith
reported that the Thai government has “increased attention” to the issue of child labour.
In 2015, a minimum age of 18 years for employment in seafood and fishing industries
was established, and child labour has become a priority for labour inspectors. The Thai
government has committed to conducting its first-ever national child labour survey
in 2018.
66
ERADICATING CHILD LABOUR BY SUPPORTING AND PROTECTING
FAMILIES
To eradicate the use of child labour, Mr. Smith noted that what “works best is really to
work with governments, with communities themselves, to empower people to look after
their own interests and their own children.”
67
This approach is the driving force
underlying four ideas espoused by witnesses, the first being that decent work can allow
a family to support a child in school. In particular, providing decent work and improved
quality of life for female caregivers—whose employment is paired with domestic and
child-rearing duties—is “essential.”
68
Second, that social protections and programs can
stave off the difficult economic choices created by insurmountable poverty, vulnerability
or crisis.
69
Third, that when children have access to education and other opportunities,
62
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1315 (Smith).
63
Ibid.
64
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1315-1320 (Smith).
65
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman).
66
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1315 (Smith).
67
Ibid., 1345 (Smith).
68
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Chorley); SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1335 (Beauséjour).
69
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Chorley).
18
they are not only less likely to voluntarily engage in child labour, they are also less
vulnerable to trafficking.
70
Finally, witnesses argued that governments must put greater
focus on law enforcement and combatting corruption to put an end to human trafficking
and forced labour affecting both children and adults.
Decent Work for Adults
The position held by GAC, that “the key to ending child labour is really ensuring that
women—and men, but mostly women—have access to decent work,”
71
echoed the
statements of several witnesses.
72
To have decent work is to have the opportunity to
work for a living wage with security in the workplace and in the absence of exploitative
conditions such as those that characterize forced labour.
73
Mr. Chorley described UNICEF
(United Nations Children’s Fund) programming at factories to ensure better working
conditions and health care for female workers.
74
Mr. Rakesh Patry, Director General of
the Labour Program at ESDC, noted that challenges remain in ensuring adequate labour
inspections, and that there are even greater obstacles to protecting workers’ right to
freedom of association.
75
Workers’ mobilization could achieve better working conditions
and could also empower workers to systematically monitor whether child or forced
labour is being used across the supply chain in which they participate.
76
Ms. Kate
Kennedy, Managing Director (North America) for the Freedom Fund, also briefly
mentioned the prospect of giving women access to small business ownership by
providing inexpensive capital and vocational training.
77
70
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman). See also: SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017,
1340 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Chorley); SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017,
1335 (Beauséjour).
71
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1335 (Beauséjour).
72
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1340 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1340 (McQuade);
SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1355 (Kennedy).
73
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1340 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Chorley); SDIR,
Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1335 (Beauséjour).
74
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Chorley).
75
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1325 (Patry).
76
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1355 (McQuade).
77
SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1355 (Kennedy).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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19
Social Protections for Adults and Children
Witnesses noted that one of the most significant factors in the decline of child labour
has been the enhancement of social protection systems. These systems include access to
childcare, medical care and social programs, including, but not limited to, those geared
specifically towards reducing child labour and promoting education.
78
For example,
witnesses credited cash transfer programs with contributing to the elimination of child
labour.
79
In such programs, governments identify the neediest families and provide them
with monthly stipends to meet basic needs, thereby reducing children’s need to work.
Stipends are sometimes conditional on a child’s attendance in school.
80
Ms. Becker
noted that these programs are relatively low cost. In Morocco, she noted, cash transfers
of US$7 per child per month were enough to “dramatically reduce child labour rates and
increase school enrolment."
81
In the Philippines, Mr. Messenger informed the
Committee of a program run by World Vision Canada, in which child labour in the sugar
cane industry was reduced by 74% over a three-year period. This was accomplished by
“increasing economic alternatives, advocating for laws and policies, providing education
and vocational training for children who had fallen behind in school, and empowering
children to speak out.”
82
Mr. Edwin Wilson, Executive Director of the International
Justice Mission (IJM) Canada, reminded the Subcommittee that when social programs
are premised on citizenship, there is a risk that the most vulnerable communities may
be excluded.
83
Access to High-Quality Education
Witnesses agreed that one of the most significant factors in the decline of child labour to
date has been improvement in access to, and the quality of, education.
84
Witnesses
discussed practical considerations caregivers take into account when deciding whether
to send a child to school or to earn an income. Free lunches at schools are often enough
78
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1350 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1310 (Chorley) &
1325 (Lewchuk); SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1335 (Beauséjour).
79
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1350 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1325 (Becker) &
1340 (McQuade); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1350 (Berman).
80
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1325 (Becker); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1350 (Berman).
81
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1345 (Becker).
82
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1305 (Messenger).
83
SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1335 (Wilson).
84
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1350 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1310 (Chorley) &
1325 (Lewchuk); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1325 (Becker).
20
to lower child labour rates, because families know that if they send their children to
school, they will have at least one good meal a day.
85
Conversely, practical barriers can
discourage school attendance. Often, schools are located at long distances from home.
86
The cost of transportation to and from school and other associated school costs, such as
uniforms, may be prohibitive.
87
Girls, particularly teenage girls, may stop attending
school because of a lack of safe, clean and private sanitary facilities. Dr. McQuade added
that the quality of education is often poor, and children may be ill-treated at school,
including through corporal punishment.
88
Law Enforcement
Witnesses told the Subcommittee that a stronger emphasis on law enforcement is
necessary to stymie human trafficking and forced labour orchestrated by organized
crime, issues that affect children as well as adults. IJM Canada emphasized that legal
prohibitions are already in place, but that without strong public justice systems, they are
meaningless.
89
Ms. Petra Bosma Kooman, Director of Public Relations at IJM Canada and
Ms. Kennedy highlighted that trafficking thrives where there are corrupt public
officials.
90
Ms. Bosma Kooman argued,
It is governments that have the authority and the obligation to enforce national laws
against these crimes. It is local and national police, prosecutors, and judges, not
corporate executives, who can investigate, arrest, prosecute, and punish those whose
presence is inevitable in every single slavery situation—the perpetrators.
91
Addressing Child Labour through Canadian International
Assistance
ESDC and GAC collaborate closely to fulfill the Government of Canada’s commitments to
ending child labour, particularly hazardous child labour and forced labour in supply
chains.
92
Through its Labour Program, ESDC provides technical expertise on labour law,
85
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1345 (Becker).
86
Ibid., 1320 (McQuade).
87
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1355 (Chorley).
88
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1320 (McQuade).
89
SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1315 (Bosma Kooman).
90
Ibid., & 1350 (Kennedy).
91
Ibid., 1315 (Bosma Kooman).
92
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1305 (Patry).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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21
working to improve global labour standards through bilateral partnerships and
multilateral forums.
93
GAC advances the Government of Canada’s agenda in relation to
child labour and forced labour through multilateral engagement, trade co-operation and
international assistance programming.
94
The Government of Canada negotiates comprehensive and enforceable labour
obligations in all free trade agreements. These obligations include the abolition of child
labour, the elimination of forced labour, and the effective enforcement of domestic
labour laws.
95
The Government of Canada has met resistance to the inclusion of such
obligations, and enforcement can be difficult when partner countries lack enforcement
capacity. In response to this issue, free trade agreements incorporate “a small technical
assistance program” to improve labour inspections and to share knowledge regarding
child labour or freedom of association. The Government of Canada has found this
approach to be effective, leading to “tangible improvements” regarding core labour
rights in partner countries.
96
Witnesses were particularly interested in how the Government of Canada could more
effectively marshal its international assistance programming to accelerate the
elimination of child labour in all of its forms.
97
Dr. McQuade views Canada as “an
enormously important aid donor.”
98
According to Mr. Claude Beauséjour, Director,
Education and Preventing Violence and Harmful Practices Division at GAC, the
Government of Canada’s international assistance programs “have been focused on the
root causes of what leads to child labour and on work on any other harmful practice that
leads to child labour or modern slavery.”
99
To date, the Government of Canada has
funded ILO projects that promote gender rights and tackle child labour in the garment
and footwear industries in Vietnam, and an ILO pilot project for the elimination of child
labour among refugees and host communities in Jordan.
100
Ms. Chris Moran, Director
General, Trade Portfolio Strategy and Coordination at GAC, highlighted that investments
in projects not officially labelled as child labour initiatives—such as humanitarian
assistance to refugees—also contribute to countering factors which enable economic
93
Ibid., 1325 (Patry).
94
Ibid., 1315 (Moran).
95
Ibid., 1305 (Patry).
96
Ibid.
97
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1325 (Becker) & 1350 (McQuade).
98
Ibid., 1350 (McQuade).
99
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1335 (Beauséjour).
100
Ibid., 1305 (Patry).
22
exploitation by providing decent work and livelihood opportunities, food security, better
access to finance, education, vocational training, and healthcare. Ms. Moran also noted
that under Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy, the Government of
Canada’s focus on ending all forms of violence includes “preventing and protecting
children from the worst forms of child labour as well as countering human trafficking, a
criminal activity that fuels forced and child labour.”
101
The Government of Canada continues to provide assistance to the UN Office on Drugs
and Crime, which is the primary UN agency devoted to countering human trafficking.
102
IJM Canada argued that training and professionalizing law enforcement officials in at-risk
countries would be the most effective way to combat child labour through international
assistance programming.
103
Witnesses emphasized that the Government of Canada should take a “holistic” or
“system strengthening” approach to “provide solutions that are truly sustainable.”
104
Mr. Patry recognized the invaluable contributions of social partners and civil society
organizations, particularly in the areas of research and advocacy.
105
Witnesses named a
wide variety of potential partners who could play a role in monitoring risk, at both the
individual level, the industry level or even more broadly. These partners include
teachers, child welfare workers, the health and justice sectors, and faith-based
communities, as well as cooperatives and trade unions.
106
UNICEF Canada noted that the
Government of Canada should allocate resources to address these actors’ limited
capacity.
107
The Subcommittee recommends:
101
Ibid., 1315 (Moran). See: Government of Canada, Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy,
30 October 2017.
102
Ibid.
103
SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017, 1315 (Bosma Kooman) & 1345 (Wilson).
104
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1310 (Chorley) & 1355 (Lewchuk).
105
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1305 (Patry).
106
UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 8; SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1345 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence,
30 November 2017, 1355 (McQuade).
107
UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 2.
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23
Recommendation 1 – Prioritizing the Elimination of Child Labour and Forced Labour in
Canada’s International Assistance
That the Government of Canada make the elimination of all forms of child labour and
forced labour a specific goal in its international assistance spending, and a metric
through which to evaluate its international assistance policy. We encourage the
Government of Canada to actively support programming to address the root causes of
child labour and forced labour, particularly among groups and regions where progress
has stalled.
Recommendation 2 – Improving Access to Quality Education for Children and Adults
That the Government of Canada continue to work with its international partners to
increase the quality and accessibility of education for children and adults affected by
child and forced labour, with a specific emphasis on vocational training and
entrepreneurship.
Recommendation 3 – Supporting Law Enforcement and Judicial Systems
That the Government of Canada invest in the provision of training and resources for law
enforcement, as well as the capacity of judicial systems to bring those responsible for the
proliferation of child labour to justice, where states are open to such assistance.
Recommendation 4 – Including Discussion of Child Labour and Forced Labour in all Free
Trade Negotiations
That the Government of Canada include discussion of child labour and forced labour in
its free trade negotiations, including an assessment of progress made in eliminating the
use of child labour in the supply chains of the country in question.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
The Hon. Mr. Christopher Evans, Director, Perth Headquarters, of the Western Australia
division of the Walk Free Foundation, observed that the Government of Canada and
Canadian industry have recognized that business also has a role to play in the protection
and promotion of human rights.
108
The term “corporate social responsibility” (CSR) is
108
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1330 (Evans).
24
used to refer to this idea.
109
As explained by Mr. Talibart, “[c]ompanies now have a
greater consideration for the future, the environment, and global sustainability. The old
idea that directors were serving the immediate financial interests of current
shareholders has been consigned to the past.”
110
Corporate Social Responsibility Guidelines and Voluntary
Initiatives
Among the CSR guidelines produced by the international community for states and
businesses are the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). The
UNGPs, unanimously endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2011, affirm the state
duty to protect against human rights abuses by third parties, including business. The
UNGPs indicate that states may require businesses to communicate how they have
addressed their human rights impacts. They also suggest operational due diligence
measures.
111
Another set of guidelines, the Children’s Rights and Business Principles,
developed in partnership by UNICEF, the UN Global Compact and the NGO Save the
Children, addresses CSR from a child rights’ perspective.
112
Canada encourages Canadian
companies to abide by the Children’s Rights and Business Principles.
113
The Organisation
for Co-operation and Economic Development (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational
Enterprises (MNEs), another important international CSR standard, are non-binding
recommendations for responsible business conduct addressed by governments to MNEs
operating in or from adhering countries. The OECD Guidelines for MNEs include a
chapter on human rights that is consistent with the UNGPs.
114
The OECD has also
published a series of supply chain due diligence guidance materials for the financial,
mineral, garment and footwear sectors. According to Ms. Moran, Canada has been
active in supporting the development and dissemination of these materials.
115
109
Global Affairs Canada defines corporate social responsibility (CSR) as “the voluntary activities undertaken by
a company to operate in an economic, social and environmentally sustainable manner.” Global Affairs
Canada, Responsible Business Conduct Abroad.
110
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1325 (Talibart).
111
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 2.
112
World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 12. See: UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights,
Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, 2011, and UNICEF, UN Global Compact and Save the
Children, Children’s Rights and Business Principles, 2012.
113
Government of Canada, Child labour.
114
Organisation for Co-operation and Economic Development [OECD], OECD Guidelines for Multinational
Enterprises, 2011, p. 31.
115
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1310 (Moran).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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25
Canada endorsed the UNGPs and the OECD Guidelines for MNEs, among other CSR
standards, in its Enhanced CSR Strategy to Strengthen Canada’s Extractive Sector Abroad
(Extractive Sector CSR Strategy).
116
As explained by Ms. Moran, the Extractive Sector
CSR Strategy
articulates Canada's expectations for our extractive sector operations abroad…and
specifically, engagement to promote internationally recognized guidelines, foster
networks to convene key stakeholders on CSR issues, strengthen the environment for
responsible business and anti-corruption measures, and provide effective and easily
accessible dispute resolution mechanisms.
117
The Extractive Sector CSR Strategy outlines a “government expectation” that Canadian
companies operating abroad respect human rights, consult host governments and local
communities, and work in a socially and environmentally responsible manner.
118
In cases
where international standards such as the UNGPs are more stringent than local laws,
Canadian companies are expected to abide by the more rigorous requirements,
“specifically on children’s rights and child labour impacts.”
119
Ms. Moran noted that
the principles underlying the Extractive Sector CSR Strategy “could be applied to
other sectors.”
120
Canadian extractive sector companies are also expected to participate in the dispute
resolution mechanisms through the Office of the Extractive Sector CSR Counsellor and
the National Contact Point (NCP), which is guided by the OECD Guidelines for MNEs. The
CSR Counsellor facilitates dialogue between parties at the early stages of a dispute, and
Canada’s NCP “provides a multi-sectoral, accessible platform for dialogue and resolution
between parties seeking solutions that may include changed or improved practices,
compensation, and apology.”
121
After the conclusion of the Subcommittee’s hearings,
the Government of Canada announced the future creation of the Office of the Canadian
Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise, which would be empowered to investigate
116
Global Affairs Canada, Canada’s Enhanced Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy to Strengthen Canada’s
Extractive Sector Abroad, 2014 [Canada’s Enhanced CSR Strategy, 2014].
117
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1310 (Moran).
118
Ibid.
119
Ibid.
120
Ibid.
121
Ibid.
26
companies of its own accord. The initial mandate will cover the extractive sector and the
garment sector, and expand after the first year.
122
Extractive sector companies that fail to respect and apply the standards endorsed by the
Extractive Sector CSR Strategy and/or participate in the dialogue resolution mechanisms
may face withdrawal of trade commissioner services and other support from the
government.
123
However, Ms. Moran noted that most Canadian companies in the food
and garment industries – two of the most at-risk sectors for child and forced labour –
import their goods from suppliers abroad. Therefore, the utility of the Canadian Trade
Commissioner Service, which promotes Canadian exports and attracts inward
investment to Canada, is limited.
124
Failure to comply with the expectations outlined in
the Extractive Sector CSR Strategy may also be taken into account during the
consideration of requests for financing support by Export Development Canada.
125
Various industries have also developed their own CSR tools and mechanisms. For
example, the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) established the mandatory “Towards
Sustainable Mining” (TSM) initiative, which requires members to take measures to
prevent the use of child and forced labour in their supply chain.
126
Independent verifiers
assess whether member-operated mines have such measures in place.
127
According to
Ms. Moran, the TSM initiative “is unique in the world and has established itself as a best-
in-class CSR standard for the mining industry.”
128
Mr. Smith shared that companies can
develop codes of conduct by exchanging information on CSR best practices. The “Child
Labour Platform” hosted by the ILO facilitates such exchange between companies from a
variety of sectors, including large corporations such as Coca-Cola and Primark.
129
Dr. McQuade praised the cocoa production sector for developing child-centred and
community-based anti-child labour initiatives. He observed that chocolate brands
“recognized explicitly and publicly that child labour, and to a lesser extent child slavery, is
a major problem in their supply chain,” and that “[m]ost other businesses are still in a
122
Government of Canada, “The Government of Canada brings leadership to responsible business conduct
abroad,” News release, 17 January 2018. See also: Global Affairs Canada, Responsible business conduct
abroad – Questions and answers, 16 February 2018.
123
Canada’s Enhanced CSR Strategy, 2014.
124
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1315 (Moran).
125
Canada’s Enhanced CSR Strategy, 2014.
126
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1310 (Moran). See also: Mining Association of Canada, “Taking action to
prevent child and forced labour in the mining supply chain,” News release, 18 September 2017.
127
UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 5.
128
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1310 (Moran).
129
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1355 (Smith).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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27
state of denial.”
130
Ms. Becker referred to a Swiss jewellery company that, through a
three-year investment in several Latin American artisanal mines, has helped to “improve
standards, reach fair trade certification, and then source from those mines... [knowing]
exactly where their gold is coming from… [and] exactly what kind of conditions it’s
produced under.”
131
The Subcommittee recommends:
Recommendation 5 – Building Capacity of Canadian Businesses to Monitor their
Supply Chains
That the Government of Canada develop a strategy to incent businesses to thoroughly
and continually monitor their supply chains for the use of child labour and forced labour,
and to share best practices. The strategy should include tools, guidance and other forms
of support, particularly for small and medium enterprises.
The Limits of Voluntary Initiatives and the Need for Legislation
Despite the progress made by the Government of Canada, the private sector, and the
international community, in reducing child labour rates, witnesses identified some
persistent challenges, as well as limitations of existing initiatives. Ms. Becker noted that
international human rights standards such as the UNGPs are not legally binding,
observing that “some companies take them seriously, but many do not.”
132
Mr. Smith
and Mr. Chorley noted that corporate social audits usually extend only to the first tier of
production, while child labour tends to be present further down the supply chain.
133
Mr. Smith and Dr. McQuade emphasized that social audits “can tell you what’s
happening today, but [do not] tell you about yesterday or tomorrow.”
134
Witnesses were dissatisfied with existing levels of voluntary disclosure with respect to
CSR initiatives. According to World Vision Canada, most Canadian companies “are
disclosing very little, if any, meaningful information about the policies, practices, and
due diligence that they have in place.”
135
While a lack of transparency does not
130
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1320 (McQuade).
131
Ibid., 1350 (Becker).
132
Ibid.
133
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1315 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1340 (Chorley).
134
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1345 (Smith); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1355 (McQuade).
135
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1305 (Messenger).
28
necessarily imply complacency, it does make “constructive dialogue and accountability
about these issues next to impossible.”
136
The voluntary nature of CSR initiatives allows companies to remain non-committal or to
fail to meet their public commitments without consequence.
137
The result is an “uneven
playing field” between companies that conduct supply chain due diligence and those
that do not. According to Ms. Becker, socially responsible companies are “almost
penalized” for their choice.
138
Ms. Berman elaborated:
…responsible business needs government to regulate in order for it to not be undercut
by unscrupulous competitors. We know that there's a race to the bottom. In terms of
labour standards, there is just-in-time instant production, and the prices of goods are
getting lower and lower. Without government intervention to set a regulatory
framework, it is extremely difficult for business to self-regulate.
139
Furthermore, the Subcommittee learned that voluntary CSR initiatives have not
penetrated corporate culture in major emerging economies in the “global south.”
In 2013, the ILO found “little documentation of efforts among companies based in Brazil,
South Africa, and India to address any adverse impacts they might have with regard to
child labour in their own supply chains.”
140
Mr. Smith noted that most CSR initiatives
“consisted of philanthropy and [were] unconnected to supply chains.” He attributed this
to lower levels of scrutiny by governments, consumers and civil society.
141
There are cases where the private sector has led the way without the pressure of
legislation imposed upon them. Mr. Lewchuk stated that some large companies or
“pioneers,” such as Mondelez International, are working to improve the integrity of their
supply chains. He explained that “Mondelez International and others have run some
really good programs in which they have worked with local farmers and their families to
reduce child labour by setting up co-operatives, microfinance”, addressing issues “in the
deep-down tiers of the supply chain.”
142
Mr. Chorley also underlined the importance of
136
Ibid.
137
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1330 (Evans); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1330 (Becker);
Jonathan Paterson and Pujan Modi, International Justice and Human Rights Clinic, University of British
Columbia Peter A. Allard School of Law, Written Brief, 6 November 2017 [UBC Law School, Written Brief],
p. 3.
138
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1330 (Becker).
139
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1350 (Berman).
140
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1315 (Smith).
141
Ibid.
142
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1325 (Lewchuk).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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29
the private sector in the elimination of child labour. He noted that companies are
attempting to fill gaps left by the absence of legislation, particularly in the extractive
sector. He provided a specific case in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where civil
society pressure has resulted in companies beginning to “map their detailed and
complex supply chains, from artisanal mine, through the traders, through the smelters,
up to the suppliers.”
143
Witnesses looked to supply chain legislation and related measures to formalize the
expectation that companies make efforts to monitor their supply chains. They noted that
motivating larger companies to inform themselves about their suppliers’ practices can
have a “cascading effect” on a supply chain’s lower tiers.
144
Broadly applicable legislation
would also provide the opportunity for smaller companies to learn from CSR “pioneers”
by opening space for a discussion of best practices.
145
SUPPLY CHAIN LEGISLATION IN OTHER JURISDICTIONS
The Subcommittee heard testimony describing likeminded jurisdictions’ efforts to
galvanize the private sector to eliminate the use of child and forced labour from supply
chains. In 2010, the U.S. state of California passed transparency legislation that requires
certain large companies to disclose what efforts, if any, they have made to end the use
of child and/or forced labour in supply chains. The U.K. enacted comprehensive
legislation on modern slavery in 2015. Australia has committed to passing similar
legislation. More recent legislative initiatives in France and, potentially, the Netherlands
go further, requiring large companies to identify risks and develop due diligence
strategies, and including an array of options for the public or the government to hold
businesses to account.
146
While there are significant differences in the approaches
chosen in other jurisdictions, one shared feature is that, to date, no legislative initiative
has defined the term supply chain, or circumscribed what forms of business
relationships are covered. Transparency and due diligence legislation has already
affected Canadian companies operating in those jurisdictions.
147
143
Ibid., 1315 (Chorley).
144
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1330 (Lewchuk).
145
Advisory Committee of the Modern Slavery Registry, Written Brief, 8 December 2017 [Written Brief], p. 2.
146
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, pp. 4-6.
147
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1320 (Talibart).
30
Supply Chain Transparency Legislation with Reporting
Requirements
The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act (2010) (CTSCA) requires retailers and
manufacturers doing business in California with worldwide gross receipts of over
US$100 million to make a one-time disclosure regarding their “efforts to eradicate
slavery and human trafficking from [their] direct supply chain for tangible goods offered
for sale.”
148
Human trafficking is defined in another California law as the deprivation of
liberty to obtain forced labour. “Severe human trafficking” is defined as the use of force,
fraud or coercion to subject a person to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage
or slavery.
149
Disclosures must be posted on company websites and must address
verification, audits, certification, internal accountability, and training efforts. Failure to
produce disclosures may result in an injunction by the California Attorney General.
150
Section 54 of the U.K.’s Modern Slavery Act, 2015 (MSA) requires companies to post
annual disclosures online outlining their efforts to address modern slavery in their global
supply chains. The MSA targets “slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour,” as
defined in the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as human trafficking for
the purposes of listed forms of exploitation, including “seeking services” from children
and other vulnerable persons.
151
The provision applies to public and private companies
and partnerships wherever they are incorporated or formed, and in whatever sector
they operate, if they run a business or part of a business in any part of the U.K. and have
a global turnover of over £36 million (approximately C$60 million). The MSA does not
set minimum requirements, but suggests that companies disclose policies, due diligence
processes, key performance indicators and training with respect to modern slavery. The
MSA empowers the Secretary of State to request a court order requiring disclosure from
a company that has not complied with section 54.
152
After conducting departmental and parliamentary inquiries, the Australian government
has announced its intention to introduce supply chain legislation similar to the MSA. A
parliamentary committee recommended that Australian legislation include a broad but
clear definition of modern slavery that includes references to human trafficking and
slavery offences in their criminal code, and specific mention of child labour and the
148
Office of the Attorney General of California, The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act, 2015, pp. i–ii.
149
Ibid., Appendices A and B.
150
UBC Law School, Written Brief, p 4; World Vision, Written Brief, p. 8; ICJ Canada, Written Brief, pp. 4-5.
151
Modern Slavery Act, 2015 (U.K.) c. 30 arts. 1-4, 54.
152
World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 8; UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 5; ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 4.
See: Modern Slavery Act, 2015 (U.K.) c. 30 art. 54.
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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31
worst forms of child labour.
153
The proposed legislation would require businesses with
an annual revenue over approximately C$100 million to report annually on their efforts
to address modern slavery in their operations and supply chains. The Australian
government is considering options for monitoring, including creating a central repository
of statements and/or supporting civil society monitoring efforts.
154
Legislation with Due Diligence Requirements
France enacted the Corporate Duty of Vigilance Law in March 2017, which creates a
“duty of vigilance” for multinational firms carrying out all or part of their activity in
France.
155
This legislation goes further than the MSA and other transparency legislation
by specifically requiring large corporations to establish a due diligence plan to identify
risks and prevent violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms or serious harm
to health, safety or the environment. The plan must be made public. The legislation
allows interested parties to apply for a court order requiring non-compliant companies
to pay a penalty, as well as those affected by a company’s non-compliance to bring a civil
action against the company.
156
In February 2017, the lower chamber of the Dutch Parliament adopted the Child Labour
Due Diligence Bill. The bill is currently before the Dutch Senate. The law would require
companies that provide goods and services to Dutch consumers, including companies
registered outside the Netherlands, to identify whether there is a “reasonable suspicion”
that child labour is present in their global value chains and – if this is the case – to
develop a plan of action to combat it. Companies would be required to certify that they
have conducted the required due diligence. These declarations would be published
through a government registry. Stakeholders who can provide concrete evidence that a
company’s goods or services were produced with child labour would be able to submit a
complaint to that company. If the issue is not resolved, the stakeholder would be able to
153
Parliament of Australia Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, Hidden in Plain
Sight: Inquiry into establishing a Modern Slavery Act in Australia, December 2017, p. 97, 5.18-5.20.
154
World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 8; ICJ Canada, Written Brief, pp. 5-6. See also: Attorney-General's
Department, Australian Government, Modern Slavery in Supply Chains Reporting Requirement: Public
Consultation Paper and Regulation Impact Statement, 2017, p. 17.
155
Legifrance.gouv.fr, LOI n° 2017-399 du 27 mars 2017 relative au devoir de vigilance des sociétés mères et
des entreprises donneuses d’ordre (1).
156
World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 9; ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 5; SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017,
1310 (Becker). See: Legifrance.gouv.fr, Code de commerce - Article L225-102-4 (Créé par LOI n
o
2017-399 du
27 mars 2017 art. 1). “Large corporations” are defined in the French legislation as French-headquartered
companies with at least 5,000 worldwide employees, and French subsidiaries of foreign-owned companies
that employ at least 10,000 employees worldwide.
32
submit the complaint to Dutch authorities. Failure to conduct the required due diligence
would result in a modest fine, or in criminal penalties including substantial fines if such a
failure is repeated.
157
Learning Lessons from Other Jurisdictions
Given that legislation in other jurisdictions is relatively new, its effectiveness is not yet
clear.
158
Nonetheless, the Subcommittee heard that like-minded jurisdictions are
learning from one another. For example, the Subcommittee learned that the U.K.
legislation avoids several key criticisms of the California legislation
159
and that
subsequent private members’ legislation in the U.K. is seeking to further refine and
strengthen transparency requirements.
160
Over the course of the past two years,
Australia’s parliament carefully studied the U.K. legislation and its critiques before
arriving at its final recommendations.
161
Witnesses who appeared before the
Subcommittee or who submitted briefs have also drawn lessons about the merits and
drawbacks of other jurisdictions’ approaches.
162
In particular, witnesses considered what
kinds of human rights violations businesses should report on, and which businesses
should be subject to transparency legislation. Witnesses also discussed the merits and
drawbacks of including positive due diligence obligations, as well as measures that
would need to be in place to ensure high-quality disclosures. Mr. Messenger underlined
the effectiveness of “publicly shining a light on companies’ practices,” noting that “the
U.K. legislation has led to 39% of companies implementing new policies and systems to
prevent labour exploitation, and 50% of companies collaborating more with other
stakeholders to take action.”
163
157
World Vision, Written Brief, p. 9; ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 5.
158
Ibid., 1310; World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 10.
159
World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 10; UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 4.
160
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1400 (Berman); Dentons Canada LLP, Memorandum: World Vision:
Constitutional Basis for the Enactment of Federal Supply Chain Transparency Legislation, 12 August 2016,
p. 5. See: Bill 6, Modern Slavery (Transparency in Supply Chains) Bill [U.K. HL], 2017-2019 sess., 2016,
(1
st
Reading 12 July 2017).
161
Parliament of Australia Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, Hidden in Plain
Sight: Inquiry into establishing a Modern Slavery Act in Australia, December 2017.
162
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1330 (Messenger); World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 11; Human
Rights Watch, Written Brief, December 2017 [Written Brief], p. 2.
163
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1305 (Messenger).
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What Human Rights Violations should be the Focus of Legislation?
Given the connection between decent work for adults and the vulnerability of children
to exploitation, witnesses argued that supply chain legislation should address not only
child labour but also all forms of forced labour affecting adults as well as children.
164
Witnesses cautioned that a narrow approach—such as legislation targeting only human
trafficking—would fail to recognize the connection between labour rights and other
internationally recognized human rights.
165
Instead, Human Rights Watch argued,
legislation should seek to eliminate dangerous working conditions, abuse by employers,
violations of the rights of free association and collective bargaining, and reduction or
non-payment of wages.
166
Likewise, witnesses agreed that imposing reporting or due
diligence requirements on companies for both child labour and adult forced labour
would not add an excessive burden, as, in Mr. Talibart’s words, “the solution for one is
also going to be the solution for the other.”
167
Mr. Simon Lewchuk, Senior Policy Advisor
for World Vision Canada, emphasized that guidance and clarity on the definitions and
scope contemplated by legislation would be “absolutely key” to its success. He noted,
for example, that the lack of an internationally recognized definition of “modern slavery”
has created challenges for companies attempting to comply with the MSA.
168
To which Companies should Transparency Legislation Apply?
The matter of which companies should be subject to supply chain transparency
legislation is “contested.”
169
Witnesses disagreed on whether legislation should be
broad-based or focus on specific sectors. Ms. Berman argued against narrow legislation
because labour-related human rights violations occur across many sectors.
170
By
contrast, other witnesses saw the benefit of focusing on industries at greater risk of
164
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1310 (Berman) & 1330 (Talibart).
165
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1310 & 1335 (Becker); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017,
1320 (Berman); Ethical Trading Initiative, Written Brief, 12 December 2017 [ETI, Written Brief], pp. 1-2.
166
Human Rights Watch, Written Brief, p. 2.
167
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1330 (Talibart). See also: SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017,
1350 (Becker) & 1350 (McQuade).
168
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1330 (Lewchuk).
169
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1345 (Evans).
170
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1320 (Berman); ETI, Written Brief, pp. 1-2.
34
having child and/or forced labour in their supply chains, including agriculture, mining
and apparel, as a first step.
171
With respect to what type of companies should be subject to legislation, witnesses
proposed thresholds based on turnover that ranged from C$35 million to
C$100 million.
172
Mr. Evans noted that, since such legislation would require transparency
or due diligence down the supply chain, buyers would require the participation of their
smaller suppliers; therefore, “it doesn't really matter where you start.”
173
Mr. Messenger
emphasized that caution should be taken not to impose an “undue burden” on smaller
companies.
174
He argued that legislation should be focused on larger companies because
they can have a greater impact, through their global reach, and because they have a
greater ability to marshal resources towards compliance.
175
Should Positive Due Diligence Obligations be Included?
As the French legislation has only been in force for several months, and the Dutch bill
has yet to pass, their effectiveness has not been assessed. Some witnesses, however,
already view mandatory due diligence legislation as an “improvement” over legislation
creating reporting requirements
176
since a company could fully respect reporting
legislation by stating that it is doing nothing to address modern slavery.
177
Ms. Becker
argued that efforts to meet reporting requirements would not lead companies to fully
investigate their supply chains down to their input-level suppliers, where the risk of the
use of child or forced labour is greatest. She argued that, to date, companies have simply
accepted assurances from their direct suppliers, and that, without due diligence
obligations, they would continue to do so.
178
Several witnesses argued for due diligence obligations, including the establishment of
risk assessment protocols to identify, mitigate and prevent the risk of the use of child or
171
Human Rights Watch, Written Brief, p. 3; UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 8.
172
UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 8; ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 11.
173
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1345 (Evans).
174
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1330 (Messenger).
175
Ibid.
176
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1315 (Becker); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1330 (Talibart) &
1340 (Berman); UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 3; Human Rights Watch, Written Brief, p. 3.
177
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1305 (Patry); World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 9.
178
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1325 (Becker).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
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35
forced labour, and to establish remedies when incidents occur.
179
Ms. Berman, UNICEF
Canada and Human Rights Watch suggested that the UNGPs be considered the baseline
for due diligence.
180
According to Ms. Berman, as a pre-existing internationally agreed-
upon framework, the UNGPs can fill the need for “a level playing field and clear rules of
the game.”
181
Witnesses noted that companies would require support to meet any due diligence
obligations.
182
Dr. McQuade also cautioned that forcing companies to take initiatives that
could affect community development would call for coordination with development
assistance programming and civil society.
183
How to Ensure High-Quality and Comparable Disclosures?
Supply chain transparency and due diligence legislation rely on consumers, civil society
and the private sector to reward responsible behaviour and punish unacceptable
behaviour. The success of such legislation thus relies on the availability of comparable
corporate disclosures.
184
Witnesses criticized the U.K. legislation because, while it
suggests potential elements of a disclosure, it does not make any specific element
mandatory. The legislation is also criticized for its failure to establish a single repository
for annual reports. As a result, witnesses noted, statements can be superficial, difficult
to compare, and relatively inaccessible.
185
World Vision Canada provided the
Subcommittee with a legal memorandum which states the importance of having
179
Ibid., 1315 (Becker) & 1335 (McQuade); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1340 (Berman); UNICEF Canada,
Written Brief, p. 3.
180
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1340 (Berman); UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 3; Human Rights Watch,
Written Brief, December 2017, p. 3.
181
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1340 (Berman).
182
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1335 (McQuade); Human Rights Watch, Written Brief, p. 3.
183
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1335 (McQuade).
184
UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 5.
185
SDIR, Evidence, 23 November 2017, 1350 (Evans); SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Lewchuk); UBC
Law School, Written Brief, p. 5. Private member’s legislation has been introduced in the U.K. House of Lords
that would amend the MSA to make the suggested elements of a statement mandatory, and require a
justification for why a company has taken no steps to prevent the use of child or forced labour in its supply
chains. The bill would require the Secretary of State to publish a list of companies covered by the MSA. See:
Bill 6, Modern Slavery (Transparency in Supply Chains) Bill [U.K. HL], 2017-2019 sess., 2016, (1
st
Reading
12 July 2017).
36
disclosure rules that apply uniformly, that mandate regular updates in reporting, and
that publicize a list of companies subject to the law.
186
Witnesses supported the creation of a well-publicized, searchable repository of
statements maintained by a government authority.
187
Authorities could identify
companies governed by the legislation, and, through the repository, identify minimally-
compliant companies, and non-compliant companies. Standardization would also be
necessary—for example through the creation of benchmarks or a questionnaire.
188
Witnesses stressed that responsible authority should be sufficiently resourced to
maintain the repository.
189
A central repository of statements made under the MSA is
currently managed by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, an NGO governed
by a coalition of stakeholders representing civil society, business and workers.
190
SUPPLY CHAIN TRANSPARENCY IN THE CANADIAN CONTEXT
Witnesses expressed their concern that Canada risks “falling behind” if it does not
implement effective supply chain legislation in the near future.
191
Government officials
informed the Subcommittee of the Government of Canada’s efforts to date. Ms. Moran
acknowledged that addressing child and forced labour in global supply chains is
a complex endeavour that goes much beyond promoting CSR standards for Canadian
enterprises operating abroad, advocating for policy changes in foreign capitals, or
providing development assistance. Our international efforts need to be complemented
by domestic interventions with and led by companies, civil society organizations,
consumers, and investors, along with governments at all levels.
192
For over a year, the Government of Canada has been actively studying the development
of supply chain legislation in other jurisdictions. Canada is taking a “whole-of-
186
Dentons Canada LLP, Memorandum: World Vision: Constitutional Basis for the Enactment of Federal Supply
Chain Transparency Legislation, 12 August 2016 [Written Brief], p. 8.
187
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1345 (Lewchuk); SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1315 (Becker);
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1320 (Berman); UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 8; ICJ Canada, Written
Brief, p. 11.
188
World Vision Canada, Written Brief, p. 11; UNICEF Canada, Written Brief, p. 5; UBC Law School, Written
Brief, p. 8.
189
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1320 (Berman).
190
Advisory Committee of the Modern Slavery Registry, Written Brief, p. 1.
191
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1325 (Talibart) & 1345 (Trachuk); SDIR, Evidence, 7 December 2017,
1305 (Kennedy).
192
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1315 (Moran).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
ALL FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
37
government” approach to the study, given the multi-faceted impact of potential supply
chain legislation.
193
Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) spearheads an
informal interdepartmental working group “to study the issue of transparency or due
diligence throughout global supply chains”
194
and “explore how such measures could
build on Canada’s current approaches.”
195
According to Mr. Patry, the other departments
and agencies in this group are: Global Affairs Canada (GAC), Public Services and
Procurement Canada, the Department of Justice, Public Safety Canada, Natural
Resources Canada, and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.
196
The
interdepartmental working group has consulted with civil society.
197
Mr. Patry took the
position that it would be “premature” for the interdepartmental working group to come
forward with a recommendation for a Canadian approach to supply chain
transparency.
198
It is ESDC’s position that supply chain transparency is a “joint and shared responsibility”
between federal and provincial governments. Mr. Patry noted that when the federal
government ratifies international obligations that could fall under provincial jurisdiction,
such as ILO Conventions, the onus is on the federal government to consult properly with
provinces.
199
Any measures taken by the federal government to address child labour or
forced labour in supply chains must respect Canada’s constitutional division of powers.
For this reason, legislation from other jurisdictions cannot simply be transposed into the
Canadian context. Even so, Mr. Talibart emphasized that constitutional limitations should
not prevent the federal government from acting on this issue.
200
He noted,
…given the high likelihood of a cascade effect on provincial systems, and the desirability
of making a strong statement to the global community Canada should produce the best
and most visible law possible at the federal level. Even if limited in application by our
193
Ibid., 1340 (Patry).
194
Ibid., 1305.
195
Ibid.
196
Ibid. The Subcommittee submitted written questions to members of this interdepartmental working group
listed by Mr. Patry. An Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada [ISED] official informed the
Subcommittee, by email dated 21 December 2017, that ISED was not represented in the working group. The
Subcommittee did not receive any response from Natural Resources Canada or Public Safety Canada.
197
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1320 (Patry).
198
Ibid.
199
Ibid., 1330 (Patry).
200
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1335 (Talibart).
38
constitution, this would be a public statement of paramount importance and set the
tone for future Canadian legislation on this issue.
201
Constitutional considerations shaped witnesses’ views on what types of measures were
possible at the federal level. There was not a clear consensus on how to draft federal
supply chain legislation that would be effective and that would withstand constitutional
scrutiny while meeting Canada’s international obligations. Witnesses discussed three
types of measures that could be adopted at the federal level. First, witnesses considered
enacting disclosure requirements applicable to a large set of companies; second, they
considered restricting the import of goods at risk of having been made with child or
forced labour; and finally, witnesses considered adopting transparency requirements
within the public procurement context.
Broadly Applicable Disclosure Requirements
Section 91 of the Constitution Act, 1867 enumerates federal powers, including the
power to regulate trade and commerce (section 91(2)) and set criminal law
(section 91(27)).
202
Section 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867 grants provinces the
jurisdiction to pass laws concerning “property and civil rights in the province”
(section 92(13)).
203
Typically, due diligence reporting by corporations falls under
provincial jurisdiction.
204
For example, provincial securities regulators recently published
corporate governance guidelines that call for public companies to establish and publish a
Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and disclose how compliance is monitored.
205
Canadian courts have recognized that the same subject can have both federal and
provincial aspects, and that federal and provincial laws can operate concurrently and
both be valid, as long as their “pith and substance” or “dominant purpose” falls under
201
Talibart, Written Brief, p. 5.
202
Constitution Act, 1867, 30 & 31 Victoria, c. 3 (U.K.).
203
Department of Justice, Justice Canada Responses to Questions of the House of Commons’ Subcommittee on
International Human Rights concerning Child Labour and Modern Slavery January 2018 [Written Brief], p. 1;
SDIR, Evidence, 28 November 2017, 1355 (Messenger); ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 7.
204
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 7.
205
Ibid., pp. 9-10. See: National Policy 58-201 – Corporate Governance Guidelines and National Instrument 58-
101 – Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices. National Policies and National Instruments are the
result of harmonization efforts among provincial securities regulators and are generally proposed by an
informal group composed of all provincial and territorial securities regulators, called the Canadian Securities
Administrators.
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
ALL FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
39
the appropriate head of power and the measures do not have more than an incidental
impact on the other level of government’s jurisdiction.
206
Witnesses suggested that connecting disclosure requirements to a criminal offence may
successfully engage a federal head of power.
207
For example, sections 279.01-279.04 of
the Criminal Code already prohibit human trafficking, the receipt of a financial or
material benefit from human trafficking and the withholding of identity documents to
facilitate human trafficking. To date, the Department of Justice is unaware of any
prosecutions related to international supply chains.
208
International Commission of
Jurists (ICJ) Canada noted that several amendments to definitions in the Criminal Code
would be required in order to more effectively target the forms of child and forced
labour that exist in supply chains.
209
Ultimately, witnesses recommended against taking
a criminal law approach, noting that it would be relatively onerous and “inelegant.”
210
The Department of Justice also foresaw significant practical obstacles to investigation
and enforcement.
211
The federal Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA) was cited as a “useful
precedent” for supply chain transparency legislation.
212
The ESTMA requires mining
companies over a specified size (defined in assets, revenue and employees) in Canada to
disclose any payments to government officials over C$100,000, including payments
made by subsidiaries. The ESTMA’s stated purpose is to “implement Canada’s
international commitments to participate in the fight against corruption,” including
forms of corruption defined by Canada’s Criminal Code and the Corruption of Foreign
Public Officials Act.
213
The ESTMA includes criminal penalties for non-compliance.
214
In a
legal opinion drafted for World Vision Canada, Dentons Canada LLP noted that the
addition of a criminal penalty to commercial legislation would be insufficient to give the
law a valid criminal law purpose (i.e. preserving public peace, order, security, health or
morality).
215
However, the author noted that since the targeted ill is itself a criminal
206
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 7; Dentons Canada LLP, Written Brief, p. 12.
207
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 7; Dentons Canada LLP, Written Brief, p. 11.
208
Department of Justice, Written Brief, p. 2.
209
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, pp. 7-8.
210
Talibart, Written Brief, p. 4; ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 8.
211
Department of Justice, Written Brief, p. 3.
212
Dentons Canada LLP, Written Brief, p. 11.
213
Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act, S.C. 2014, c. 39, s. 376.
214
Ibid., s. 24.
215
Dentons Canada LLP, Written Brief, p. 21.
40
offence, disclosure requirements could constitute a constitutionally valid attempt to
achieve transparency in supply chains.
216
There is a stringent test for whether the federal government can use its general power
to regulate trade and commerce in a way that might impact provincial jurisdiction over
property and businesses. This test, most recently laid out by the Supreme Court of
Canada in its 2011 Reference Re Securities Act decision, includes consideration of
whether there is a general regulatory scheme under the oversight of an agency; whether
the law concerns trade as a whole as opposed to a specific industry; whether the
provinces, acting alone or together, would be constitutionally able to enact the same
measure; and whether the legislative scheme would fail if a single province failed to
enact it. Not all of these factors would need to be met in each case.
217
ICJ Canada
expressed concern that broad federal disclosure or due diligence requirements would
not meet this test.
218
However, ICJ Canada did note that the federal government could
have the power to impose disclosure obligations on importers or exporters and
corporations established pursuant to the Canada Business Corporations Act, and
corporations in federally regulated industries such as banking or transportation.
219
Import Restrictions
Witnesses strongly recommended that the Government of Canada consider banning the
import of goods produced or manufactured using child labour, forced labour, or the
labour of trafficked persons.
220
Dr. McQuade argued that import restrictions are the
most direct way to eliminate the competitive advantage created by child labour, which is
generally low-cost.
221
Witnesses also called on the Government of Canada to create a
public list of goods prohibited based on the use of child or forced labour. They noted
that prohibitions should be accompanied by a statement identifying specific problems,
216
Ibid., p. 22.
217
Reference re Securities Act, 2011 SCC 66, [2011] 3 S.C.R. 837, para. 134.
218
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 7. See: Reference re Securities Act, 2011 SCC 66, [2011] 3 S.C.R. 837; Reference
Re Firearms Act, 2000 SCC 31, [2000] 1 S.C.R. 783.
219
ICJ Canada, Written Brief, p. 7.
220
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1315 (Becker) & 1335 (McQuade); UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 9;
Human Rights Watch, Written Brief, p. 2.
221
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1335 (McQuade).
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
ALL FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
41
and the steps that can be taken by businesses and states to address human
rights abuses.
222
Witnesses suggested that Canada follow the example of the U.S., which prohibits the
import of goods mined, produced or manufactured with child or forced labour.
223
Such
merchandise is subject to seizure, and may lead to criminal investigation of the importer.
The Commissioner of U.S. Customs can exclude goods based on a complaint by any
person if the information provided could reasonably indicate that a good was produced
with forced labour. The agency acts on information concerning specific
manufacturers/exporters and specific merchandise, and does not target supply chains or
industries in problematic countries or regions.
224
The Subcommittee learned that the law
is not thoroughly enforced,
225
but that it was strengthened in 2016 to close loopholes.
226
According to Dentons Canada LLP, the federal government could ban or regulate the
importation of goods using its power to regulate international trade and commerce.
However, restrictive measures would have to be compatible with Canada’s international
trade obligations.
227
Selective import restrictions are generally prohibited under the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), a foundational treaty of the World Trade
Organization, to which Canada and 163 other members are party.
228
A specific exception
exists to allow import restrictions on goods made with prison labour. No such explicit
exception exists for child labour or the worst forms of child labour. Even so, the GATT
provides a potential defence for import restrictions that are necessary to protect public
morals or human life and health, which includes the health and safety of adults
and children.
229
222
Ibid., 1315 (Becker); UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 9.
223
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1315 (Becker) & 1335 (McQuade); UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 9;
Human Rights Watch, Written Brief, p. 2.
224
SDIR, Evidence, 30 November 2017, 1340 (Becker); SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1345 (Talibart); UBC
Law School, Written Brief, p. 5. See: The Tariff Act of 1930, 19 USC §1307, and the Trade Facilitation and
Enforcement Act, Pub. L. 14-125, 130 Stat. 122, sec. 910 (a)(2016) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection,
Forced Labor.
225
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1345 (Talibart).
226
UBC Law School, Written Brief, p. 5. See: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Forced Labor.
227
Dentons Canada LLP, Written Brief, p. 19.
228
World Trade Organization, Members and Observers; World Trade Organization, The WTO agreements.
229
Global Affairs Canada, Global Affairs Canada Written Response to Question from Subcommittee on
International Human Rights, January 2018; Dentons Canada LLP, Written Brief, p. 25.
42
Responsible Sourcing in Public Procurement
Noting that the impact of supply chain transparency legislation is likely limited to public-
facing companies with brand recognition, Ms. Berman asserted that public procurement
requirements could also reach smaller companies and suppliers.
230
Ms. Berman and
others argued that a change in public procurement policy for goods, services and works
would set a powerful example for other states.
231
This approach is already taken in the
U.S., where federal procurement regulations prohibit awarding a contract unless the
company certifies that it will not sell a product suspected of being produced with forced
or child labour and discloses its compliance plan.
232
The Subcommittee learned that
private members’ legislation has been introduced in the U.K. House of Lords to extend
the obligations of the MSA to public bodies, thereby barring non-compliant companies
from procurement processes.
233
The Subcommittee learned that Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) has
taken steps towards responsible sourcing. PSPC is currently analysing the results of a
request for information, which closed in January 2018, seeking input from the apparel
industry to develop guidelines and an approach for the ethical procurement of apparel.
PSPC proposed a model whereby suppliers would self-certify that they and their direct
Canadian and foreign suppliers comply with local laws and international standards on
labour and human rights, including freedom from child labour, forced labour and human
trafficking. PSPC anticipates that this new certification process for apparel suppliers will
come into effect by the end of 2018. Mr. Patry also noted that PSPC plans to include
similar provisions in its procurement Code of Conduct.
234
The Subcommittee recommends:
230
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1400 (Berman).
231
Ibid.; Human Rights Watch, Written Brief, p. 2.
232
Advisory Committee of the Modern Slavery Registry, Written Brief, p. 3. See: Federal Acquisition
Regulations, Subpart Evidence, 22.15-Prohibition of Acquisition of Products Produced by Child Labor.
233
SDIR, Evidence, 5 December 2017, 1400 (Berman); Dentons Canada LLP, Written Brief, p. 5. See: Bill 6,
Modern Slavery (Transparency in Supply Chains) Bill [U.K. HL], 2017-2019 sess., 2016, (1
st
Reading
12 July 2017).
234
SDIR, Evidence, 12 December 2017, 1310 (Patry); Communication from representative of Public Works and
Procurement Canada to Subcommittee on International Human Rights, 19 February 2018.
A CALL TO ACTION: ENDING THE USE OF
ALL FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SUPPLY CHAINS
43
Recommendation 6 – Advancing Initiatives to Motivate Businesses to Eliminate Child and
Forced Labour in their Supply Chains
That the Government of Canada develop legislative and policy initiatives that motivate
businesses to eliminate the use of any form of child labour in their global supply chains,
and that empower consumers and investors to engage meaningfully on this important
issue. The Government of Canada should draw on lessons learned by jurisdictions that
have implemented supply chain legislation. The federal government should involve
provincial and territorial leadership, the private sector, civil society and the broader
public as much as possible to draft and implement legislation that is constitutionally
sound, effective, and well-understood.
Recommendation 7 – Examining Canada’s Import Regime and Procurement Policies as
Levers to Eliminate the Use of Child Labour
That the Government of Canada consider how to use Canada’s import regime as well as
its public procurement policies to incentivize businesses to eliminate the use of any form
of child labour in their supply chains.
CONCLUSION
As other jurisdictions take action against the use of child and forced labour in supply
chains, Canada must follow suit – or risk falling behind its peers on this critical issue. The
Subcommittee learned that the Government of Canada is already doing important work
to combat all forms of child labour, including by addressing its root causes via
development initiatives and insisting on the inclusion of labour obligations in all free
trade agreements. In addition, the Government of Canada supports Canadian businesses
operating abroad to build their capacity to monitor their supply chains for child and
forced labour. The Subcommittee was also encouraged to learn that the Government of
Canada has formed an interdepartmental working group to study measures other
jurisdictions have taken to combat child and forced labour in supply chains, and how
such measures could be applied in Canada.
While existing initiatives are promising, there is room to strengthen their efficacy and
impact through proactive and inclusive leadership on this issue. The Government of
Canada must prioritize the elimination of all forms of child labour in supply chains. To do
so, the Government of Canada should financially support development projects that
address the root causes of child labour and forced labour, particularly among groups and
in regions in which progress has stalled. In particular, the Government of Canada should
support projects aiming to enhance access to quality education, and build justice
44
systems capable of holding perpetrators to account. The Government of Canada must
more thoroughly address the use of child labour and forced labour in supply chains
when negotiating trade agreements. The Government of Canada should develop a
strategy to support private sector efforts to monitor supply chains for child labour and
forced labour, and to share best practices. Finally, the Government of Canada should
urgently advance initiatives to motivate businesses to eliminate the use of all forms of
child labour in their global supply chains. Canada is in a position to learn from the
experiences of like-minded jurisdictions and to apply those lessons in the Canadian
context, be it with respect to transparency legislation, import restrictions or responsible
procurement policies. The federal government should involve provincial and territorial
leadership, the private sector, civil society and the broader public as much as possible to
draft and implement legislation or regulations that are constitutionally sound, effective,
and well-understood. The regulatory process must be clear and transparent, particularly
for the private sector.
While Canada has taken the first steps towards the elimination of child labour in global
supply chains, the time to take more decisive action, in the form of legislation and other
measures, is now. There is no single “silver bullet” in the fight against child labour, which
takes many forms. Nonetheless, taking concerted action to implement the
Subcommittee’s recommendations would be an important step forward in achieving the
ultimate goal of eliminating all forms of child labour worldwide.
45
GLOSSARY
CSR
Corporate social responsibility
CTSCA
California Transparency in Supply Chains Act (2010)
ESDC
Employment and Social Development Canada
ESTMA
Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act
ETI
Ethical Trading Initiative
Extractive Sector CSR
Strategy
Canada’s Enhanced CSR Strategy to Strengthen Canada’s
Extractive Sector Abroad
GAC
Global Affairs Canada
GATT
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
ICJ Canada
International Commission of Jurists Canada
IJM Canada
International Justice Mission Canada
ILO
International Labour Organization
MAC
Mining Association of Canada
Minimum Age
Convention
ILO Convention 138, the Convention concerning Minimum
Age for Admission to Employment
MNE
Multinational enterprise
MSA
Modern Slavery Act, 2015 (U.K.)
NCP
National Contact Point
NGO
Non-governmental organization
OECD
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
PSPC
Public Services and Procurement Canada
TSM
“Towards Sustainable Mining”
46
UN
United Nations
UNGPs
United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human
Rights
UNICEF
United Nations Children’s Fund
Worst Forms of Child
Labour Convention
ILO Convention 182, Convention concerning the Prohibition
and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst
Forms of Child Labour
47
APPENDIX A
LIST OF WITNESSES
Organizations and Individuals
Date
Meeting
International Labour Organization
Benjamin Smith, Senior Officer
Child Labour
2017/11/23
86
Walk Free Foundation
Christopher Evans, Director
Perth Headquarters, Western Australia
UNICEF Canada
Simon Chorley, Deputy Director
International Programs
2017/11/28
87
World Vision Canada
Simon Lewchuk, Senior Policy Advisor
Child Rights and Protection
Michael Messenger, President and Chief Executive Officer
Anti-Slavery International
Aidan McQuade, Special Advisor, Former Director
2017/11/30
88
Human Rights Watch
Jo Becker, Advocacy Director
Children's Rights
As individuals
Peter Talibart, Partner
Seyfarth Shaw LLP
2017/12/05
89
Mark A. Trachuk, Partner
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Ethical Trading Initiative
Cindy Berman, Head
Modern Slavery Strategy
International Justice Mission Canada
Petra Bosma Kooman, Director
Marketing and Public Relations
2017/12/07
90
Edwin Wilson, Executive Director
48
Organizations and Individuals
Date
Meeting
The Freedom Fund
Kate Kennedy, Managing Director
North America
2017/12/07
90
Department of Employment and Social Development
Rakesh Patry, Director General
Labour Program
2017/12/12
91
Michelle Sinclair, Senior Policy Analyst
Labour Program
Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
Claude Beauséjour, Director
Education and Preventing Violence and Harmful Practices
Division
Robert McDougall, Executive Director
South Asia Division
Chris Moran, Director General
Trade Portfolio Strategy and Coordination
Mandy Sheldrake, Deputy Director
International Crime
49
APPENDIX B
LIST OF BRIEFS
Organizations and Individuals
Amnesty International Canada
Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children
Canadian Labour Congress
Ethical Trading Initiative
Human Rights Watch
International Commission of Jurists Canada
International Justice and Human Rights Clinic
International Justice Mission Canada
Leadnow.ca
Modern Slavery Registry
Oceana Canada
Talibart, Peter
UNICEF Canada
Unseen UK
World Vision Canada
51
REQUEST FOR GOVERNMENT RESPONSE
Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the Committee requests that the government table a
comprehensive response to this Report.
A copy of the relevant Minutes of Proceedings (Meeting No. 107) is tabled and a copy of
the relevant Minutes of Proceedings of the Subcommittee on International Human
Rights (Meetings Nos 86 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 108, 112, 113, 115 and 116) is tabled.
Respectfully submitted,
Michael Levitt
Chair