Canadian watchdog probes Nike, gold mining company amid forced labour claims

As per media reports, the investigation stems from claims that either their supply chains or operations in China are involved in utilizing or profiting from the forced labour of Uighur individuals.

In a release issued on Tuesday, Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) announced the “launch of two separate investigations into allegations of Uighur forced labour in the supply chains and operations of two Canadian companies”.

Following the completion of initial assessment reports on Nike Canada Corp and Dynasty Gold Corporation, the Canadian human rights watchdog has initiated an investigation into these companies.

The decision to proceed with the investigation was made based on two out of the 13 admissible complaints received by the watchdog regarding the overseas activities of Canadian companies. These complaints were submitted in June 2022 by a coalition comprising 28 civil society organizations.

The report related to Nike Canada details the allegation that it has supply relationships with Chinese companies “identified as using or benefitting from the use of Uighur forced labour”. The company, the CORE release said, “maintains that they no longer have ties with these companies and provided information on their due diligence practices”.

The second report states that the Canadian mining company “benefited from the use of Uighur forced labour at a mine in China in which Dynasty Gold holds a majority interest. Dynasty Gold’s response to the complaint is that it does not have operational control over the mine and that these allegations arose after it left the region”.

“I have decided to launch investigations into these complaints in order to get the facts and recommend the appropriate actions”, CORE Ombudsperson Sheri Meyerhoffer said.

“I have not pre-judged the outcome of the investigations. We will await the results and we will publish final reports with my recommendations,” she added.

As to the pending 11 complaints, she said CORE will publish the initial assessment reports in the weeks ahead with corresponding decisions on how to move each complaint forward.

According to the complaint, Nike is accused of having supply relationships with various Chinese companies that have been identified by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) as utilizing or benefiting from the forced labour of Uighur individuals. The companies mentioned include Qingdao Taekwang Shoes Co Ltd, Haoyuanpeng Clothing Manufacturing Co Ltd, Esquel Textile Co Ltd, Qingdao Jifa Group, Huafu Fashion Co Ltd, and Texhong Textile Group.

Nike has responded by stating that it does not source products from Xinjiang and that they have verified with its contract suppliers that they do not use textiles or spun yarn from the region.

Updated: 12 Jul 2023, 01:34 PM IST