In December, the Government of Canada provided more information on what will be required in the first reports due May 31, 2024 under the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act enacted last year. This Canadian legislation is part of a worldwide effort to curb what is often referred to as “modern slavery”, by preventing products made with child or forced labour from entering supply chains. The Act was described by its sponsor as “a supply chain transparency bill”, where “Keeping it simple is the essence of this bill: examine our supply chains; certify there is no slavery; and if there is, tell us what they are going to do about it.” The government’s recent release provides helpful detail on issues such the size threshold and other criteria that apply before a company must file a report, and the form and content of the report which will be publicly available – but might not quite live up to the billing of “keeping it simple”. It looks as if these reports will take some time to prepare, so if the reporting requirement applies to your company, don’t wait till May to start. For more information, see the release from Public Safety Canada: https://www.publicsafety.gc.
