House and Senate Considering Anti-Sweatshop Legislation

Companies with supply chains in Asia should take note of legislative developments in both the House of Representatives and Senate.

Identical versions of the Decent Working Conditions and Fair Competition Act are being reviewed by committees in both the Senate (S. 3485) and the House of Representatives (H.R. 5635).

Introduced by Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota) and Representative Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) respectively, the bills are both at the first stage of the legislative process, where committees consider whether the bill should be presented as a whole. The Senate bill has four co-sponsors - all Democrats, the House has 55 - again all Democrats.

The purpose of the Act is to “(1) prohibit the import, export, or sale of goods made in factories or workshops that violate core labor standards; and (2) prohibit the procurement of sweatshop goods by the United States Government.”

Core labor standards are defined as follows: “(1) the right of association; (2) the right to organize and bargain collectively; (3) a prohibition on the use of any form of forced or compulsory labor; (4) a minimum age for the employment of children; and (5) acceptable conditions of work with respect to minimum wages, hours of work, and occupational safety and health”. The Act interprets “acceptable conditions” as determined by “laws, regulations, or competent authority of the country where the labor is performed”.

It should be noted that during this process, bills may undergo significant changes in markup sessions and that the majority of bills never make it out of the committee stage.

Similar legislation is set to become law in the UK this winter.

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