WASHINGTON – United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai announced today the publication of the first-ever Trade Strategy to Combat Forced Labor. The strategy is the first time the United States has laid out a comprehensive approach to using trade tools to combat forced labor. It includes a range of actions the United States is taking and will consider utilizing to address forced labor.
“Combatting forced labor has been a centerpiece of the Biden-Harris Administration’s worker-centered trade policy,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai. “While there is more work to be done, this strategy is how USTR is driving a race to the top and addressing this form of unfair economic competition that hurts and dehumanizes people all around the world.”
The Trade Strategy to Combat Forced Labor outlines a number of goals and priority actions that USTR has achieved during the Biden-Harris Administration, as well as areas for potential future action. From work on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement to launching the first ever Section 301 investigation of acts, policies, and practices that may constitute violations of labor rights in Nicaragua, this strategy demonstrates how the United States has made major strides in using trade to combat forced labor and how to build on those efforts going forward. In doing so, USTR hopes to make trade policy a force for good and to use trade policy to end forced labor.
USTR has developed this strategy in close consultation with the interagency partners and dedicated labor and business stakeholders who work tirelessly to eliminate forced labor from U.S. supply chains. In launching this strategy, USTR commends them for their ongoing work on this critical issue.
Background
United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai announced the development of this strategy in conjunction with the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking; Memorandum on Advancing Worker Empowerment, Rights, and High Labor Standards Globally; and the National Action Plan on Responsible Business Conduct. The development of this strategy included an interagency review of USTR’s existing trade policies and tools used to combat forced labor. USTR sought public comment on the development of this strategy and has undertaken an inclusive process that maximizes input from stakeholders, including labor organizations, civil society, survivors, and the private sector.
A copy of the Forced Labor Trade Strategy is available here.
###
