The Senate is moving forward on a bill that would see Canadian companies given hefty fines if they are caught using imported slave-made products, says Blacklock’s Reporter..The Senate gave second reading to the bill that could see $250,000 fines and directors’ liability for companies that import slave-made goods..The bill would also require annual reporting by large importers..“This bill will ensure Canada has the most effective and proactive legislation in the Commonwealth,” said Senator Salma Ataullahjan (Ont.)..“This bill is about basic human rights and our obligation as parliamentarians to enforce them. This bill transcends party lines and is about our humanity.”.The bill would require all companies with more than 250 employees or $40 million in annual sales to verify in yearly reports to the Department of Public Safety that offshore goods are not made by children or slaves..Bill supporters said the most suspicious imports are electronics, apparel, seafood and farm products, mainly cocoa and sugar..Senator Mobina Jaffer (B.C.) last night recalled the 2013 Rana Plaza disaster, the collapse of a Bangladeshi garment factory that killed 1,138 workers. The factory was contracted to supply clothing to Western vendors including Joe Fresh-brand apparel sold by Loblaw Companies Ltd..“In 2013, I arrived in Bangladesh when the Rana Plaza building had just collapsed,” said Jaffer..“I will never forget the scene.”.“There were people sitting all over, injured, parents looking for their children, and there were no answers. Nobody was reaching out to them to help them..“I urge us all to challenge our own buying practices of the products we use, the products we wear, the products we consume every day. Ask ourselves, how many of these products were produced by child labour?”.Access To Information records show the Department of Public Works has historically contracted garment suppliers in Bangladesh for goods like Parks Canada uniforms and jackets worn by Transportation Safety Board inspectors. Military uniforms and boots are made in Canada..“Ethics cost money,” Liberal MP John McKay (Scarborough-Guildwood, Ont.), sponsor of a similar bill C-423 that lapsed in Parliament in 2019, said in an earlier interview..“It’s not complicated. If I get a five dollar T-shirt from slave labour versus a six dollar T-shirt that’s properly procured, then I guess I’m paying six bucks.”.“Consumers don’t have the information and can’t make the decision. I think there will be a percentage of consumers who will say, ‘Well, I still want the cheap T-shirt.’ That’s just human nature.”.“But I think the notion of the common good is not only a moral notion, but an economic notion People can make short-term decisions that will negatively influence the entire supply chain, or they can make other decisions where everybody benefits.”.Bill S-216 passed Second Reading by unanimous vote. It was referred to hearings of the Senate banking, trade and commerce committee..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
The Senate is moving forward on a bill that would see Canadian companies given hefty fines if they are caught using imported slave-made products, says Blacklock’s Reporter..The Senate gave second reading to the bill that could see $250,000 fines and directors’ liability for companies that import slave-made goods..The bill would also require annual reporting by large importers..“This bill will ensure Canada has the most effective and proactive legislation in the Commonwealth,” said Senator Salma Ataullahjan (Ont.)..“This bill is about basic human rights and our obligation as parliamentarians to enforce them. This bill transcends party lines and is about our humanity.”.The bill would require all companies with more than 250 employees or $40 million in annual sales to verify in yearly reports to the Department of Public Safety that offshore goods are not made by children or slaves..Bill supporters said the most suspicious imports are electronics, apparel, seafood and farm products, mainly cocoa and sugar..Senator Mobina Jaffer (B.C.) last night recalled the 2013 Rana Plaza disaster, the collapse of a Bangladeshi garment factory that killed 1,138 workers. The factory was contracted to supply clothing to Western vendors including Joe Fresh-brand apparel sold by Loblaw Companies Ltd..“In 2013, I arrived in Bangladesh when the Rana Plaza building had just collapsed,” said Jaffer..“I will never forget the scene.”.“There were people sitting all over, injured, parents looking for their children, and there were no answers. Nobody was reaching out to them to help them..“I urge us all to challenge our own buying practices of the products we use, the products we wear, the products we consume every day. Ask ourselves, how many of these products were produced by child labour?”.Access To Information records show the Department of Public Works has historically contracted garment suppliers in Bangladesh for goods like Parks Canada uniforms and jackets worn by Transportation Safety Board inspectors. Military uniforms and boots are made in Canada..“Ethics cost money,” Liberal MP John McKay (Scarborough-Guildwood, Ont.), sponsor of a similar bill C-423 that lapsed in Parliament in 2019, said in an earlier interview..“It’s not complicated. If I get a five dollar T-shirt from slave labour versus a six dollar T-shirt that’s properly procured, then I guess I’m paying six bucks.”.“Consumers don’t have the information and can’t make the decision. I think there will be a percentage of consumers who will say, ‘Well, I still want the cheap T-shirt.’ That’s just human nature.”.“But I think the notion of the common good is not only a moral notion, but an economic notion People can make short-term decisions that will negatively influence the entire supply chain, or they can make other decisions where everybody benefits.”.Bill S-216 passed Second Reading by unanimous vote. It was referred to hearings of the Senate banking, trade and commerce committee..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
