Child and forced labor in supply chains present serious and material risks to companies and industries. To help mitigate these risks, the U.S. Department of Labor presents SourcingStrong: Business Tools for Labor Compliance in Global Supply Chains.
SourcingStrong is a tool intended to help companies build or improve a social compliance system to avoid violation of U.S. trade law prohibiting importation of goods made in whole or in part with forced labor. In this era of globalization, the production of goods in foreign countries has increased at a rapid pace and global government oversight of labor rights has not always kept up. Workers everywhere are directly impacted by non-compliance with labor standards in a way that other stakeholders are not.
Therefore, SourcingStrong helps companies of all sizes build a worker-driven social compliance system to ensure that trade unions, democratic worker organizations, and other worker representatives provide support and voice for workers to identify and raise concerns and collectively advocate for their rights and interests. Adherence to the guidance provided by SourcingStrong helps responsible businesses navigate the legal, moral, and public relations risks of labor exploitation.
