A shopper carries a bag of Nike merchandise along the Magnificent Mile shopping mall on December 21, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois.
Scott Olson | beautiful pictures
WASHINGTON — A House committee looking into the U.S. government’s economic relationship with China is asking some of the world’s largest clothing companies for information about their use of forced labor in the process. manufacturing — a practice that may violate U.S. commercial law.
Lawmakers asked retailers Temu, Shein, Nike And adidas North America on its use of materials and labor sourced from China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, according to a letter sent to company leadership Tuesday. Such conduct would constitute a violation of Act 2021 Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Actaccording to legislators.
Congress passed the UFLPA with bipartisan support after the State Department determined China was “perpetrating acts of genocide against the Uighurs and other minorities in Xinjiang.”
Letters addressed to Rupert Campbell, president of Adidas North America; Qin Sun, president of Temu; Chris Xu, CEO of Shein, and John Donahoe, president and CEO of Nike, Inc. They were signed by Representative Mike Gallagher, R-Wisc., Chairman of the House Selection Committee of the Communist Party of China, and Senior Member Raja Krishnamoorthi, Dill.
“Using forced labor has been illegal for nearly a hundred years—but despite knowing their industry is involved, too many companies look to other ways in the hope they won’t get caught, rather than clean up. their supply chain. This is unacceptable,” Gallagher said in a statement. “American businesses and companies selling in the US market have a moral and legal obligation to ensure that they do not involve themselves, their customers, or their shareholders in slave labor.”
Questions also followed the committee’s March hearing including an expert review that found US companies fund “state-sponsored forced labor programs in the region”. Uighurs”.
Lawmakers asked their questions, including the identities of material suppliers, supply chain policies, and audit measures to be taken against suppliers, to be answered, by May 16. .
Representatives of the companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment from CNBC.
The latest requests follow a separate bipartisan effort earlier this week urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to require Shein to confirm it does not employ Uighur workers before the company could expand into the US market. Shein has denied the allegation.
Chinese brands Shein and Temu, owned by Chinese parent company PDD Holdings, are also accused of taking advantage of a 90-year loophole to avoid tariffs on many goods sold directly to US consumers. legislator said Tuesday.
Lawmakers said Shein and Temu relied heavily on the minimum provision in Section 321 of the Tariff Act of 1930 to exempt import duties if the fair retail value in the country of shipment did not exceed $800. la.
