U.K. Employment Rights Bill triggers debate over flexibility vs. exploitation
Contract workers’ rights are in the spotlight in the U.K. and some EU countries as governments seek to end exploitative practices by eliminating zero-hours contracts, much to the chagrin of some business leaders.
What’s your risk appetite? EU firms grapple with ‘ridiculously complex’ ESG reporting rules
Discussions on the increasingly complex ESG rules in the EU were the crux of some conversations at Compliance Week Europe, a two-day conference in Amsterdam Oct. 15-16. The event brought together Compliance Week and its sister organization, the International Compliance Association, and more than 200 GRC professionals across industries.
New U.K. enforcement body piles pressure on sanctions evaders
Global sanctions rules are increasing rapidly, as are tools to detect and punish those who break them. In response, the U.K. government is creating a new Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation to investigate and penalize those who break sanctions rules.
Commerce Dept. unveils new supply chain risk assessment tool
The U.S. Department of Commerce unveiled a diagnostic supply chain risk assessment tool, which will “utilize a comprehensive set of indicators to assess structural supply chain risk across the U.S. economy,” the agency said.
U.K. forced labor ruling raises bar for supply chain monitoring
Companies will need to tighten up how they monitor their supply chains after a recent U.K. ruling determined that corporates could be open to money laundering charges if they fail to act in cases where they believe there is a risk of forced labor.
All hands on deck needed to get ESG disclosures right, report finds
Multiple emerging environmental, social, and governance and disclosure standards pose legal and operational risks to many companies, but also opportunities to improve reporting and get ahead of requirements, a new report found.
Risk visibility striking fear in companies onboarding new customers
A lack of risk visibility is causing companies to reject customers–and potentially lose money–over fears they might be in danger of violating rules around anti-money laundering and sanctions regulations.
French bus part supplier CBM to pay $2.4M to settle DOJ fraud allegations
A French bus parts supplier will pay more than $2.4 million in penalties, disgorgement, and restitution to settle charges that it fraudulently misled its U.S. customers about the source of some of its parts.
Q&A: Seaco general counsel, compliance head on environmental regulations
Dominic Buckwell, general counsel and compliance head at global marine container leasing company Seaco, discussed key themes including anti-money laundering, sanctions, and why the industry needs common environmental reporting standards.
Additions to UFLPA Entity List signal seafood supply chain risks
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security added three China-based entities across the seafood, aluminum, and footwear industries to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List.
Panelists break down robust sanctions landscape at TPRM Summit
Sanctions compliance officers face myriad challenges as complex geopolitical situations heighten risks worldwide, experts discussed during Compliance Week’s Third-Party Risk Management & Oversight Summit.
CPE Webcast: Techniques for more effective forced labor risk identification in supply chains
By requiring U.S. importers to prove that their supply chains are free of forced labor, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) has created heightened nationwide demand for sophisticated supply chain mapping and risk identification capabilities.
Hyundai Motor caught in DOL complaint over child labor
The Department of Labor sued three Alabama businesses, including a Hyundai Motor manufacturing plant, for employing a 13-year-old worker on an auto parts assembly line.
Senate report cites VW, BMW, JLR for potential forced labor violations
A U.S. Senate report found three European automakers—Volkswagen, BMW, and Jaguar Land Rover—sold cars in the United States with parts sourced from a supplier suspected of using forced labor from China’s Xinjiang region.
Flex says no action by OFAC into possible sanctions violations
Flex disclosed in a public filing the Office of Foreign Assets Control is taking no action into potential sanctions violations the global manufacturer voluntarily self-disclosed in 2019.
UFLPA Entity List nearly doubles with textile industry sweep
The Department of Homeland Security announced its largest batch of additions to the list of companies blocked under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act in the form of a sweep of the Chinese textile industry.
e-Book: Managing increased risk of forced, child labor in your supply chain
Instances of forced or child labor in corporate supply chains are a growing problem in the United States.
Williams-Sonoma fined record $3.2M over admitted ‘Made in USA’ order violations
Kitchen and home retail company Williams-Sonoma agreed to pay nearly $3.2 million for failing to comply with a 2020 administrative order by the Federal Trade Commission prohibiting its marketing of imported goods as made in the United States.
e-Book: Tips for TPRM, supply chain due diligence
Implementing a risk-based approach to third-party due diligence frees up compliance resources to be deployed efficiently and helps organizations meet the expectations of regulators.
Report: Poor awareness of supply chain disclosure regs leaving firms exposed
Compliance failures in the supply chain are hampering organizations’ efforts to implement environmental, social, and governance initiatives and meet disclosure requirements, according to a new report by U.K. law firm Burges Salmon.
U.S. senator calls for Temu ban over forced labor, privacy concerns
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) is calling on the Biden administration to investigate and ban Chinese e-commerce company Temu over forced labor and data privacy violation concerns.
U.K. border controls on EU goods evoke supply chain disruption concerns
The imposition of full border controls on goods entering the United Kingdom from the European Union will affect importers and their EU suppliers, and both are advised to prepare for increased checks, possible delays, and new charges.
New DHS strategy sets textiles up for added UFLPA scrutiny
The Department of Homeland Security announced a new strategy set to help close a loophole that allows certain textile-related shipments from China to enter the United States without scrutiny under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
CW2024 leadership panel on navigating scrutiny, prep for more change
The global political landscape should be high on the risk radar of compliance officers in 2024, according to compliance leaders speaking at Compliance Week’s 2024 National Conference, along with increased regulatory scrutiny toward forced labor, ESG, and M&A.
CBP stats show persistent problem areas under UFLPA
It’s been nearly two years since the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act took effect, and as enforcement statistics and recent reports demonstrate, many businesses are still not adequately vetting their supply chains.
CPE webcast: Rapid expansion of global forced labor regulations
Join us as we dive into the best practices for performing due diligence across your entire supply chain—from the sourcing of raw materials to the delivery of finished goods—to become (and stay) compliant with this ever-evolving landscape.
DOL orders Tuff Torq to pay $1.8M over child labor violations
The Department of Labor ordered Tennessee-based Tuff Torq Corp. to pay nearly $1.8 million over alleged child labor violations.
Policy changes underscore need for enhanced child labor due diligence
Rooting out potential child or forced labor violations in your company’s supply chain can have benefits beyond protecting reputation and being ethically sound. The process can also help your firm comply with pending child labor laws in other jurisdictions.
The auditor’s role in supply chain due diligence
Although compliance should be the company’s primary responsibility, auditors have become the last line of defense and are getting pressured and blamed for supply chain issues, including instances of child labor. Is this expected to become the normal for the profession?
Want to be an ethical supply chain influencer? It’s all about the ‘collab’
Supply chain and ethics and compliance professionals could take a page out of the social media influencer playbook and look to collaborate with suppliers more to create their own win-win scenarios.
Ford to pay $365M in DOJ deal for evading customs tariffs
Ford Motor Co. agreed to pay $365 million to settle charges levied by the Department of Justice that the automaker purposefully dodged import duties for years by mislabeling and undervaluing hundreds of thousands of cargo vans it brought into the United States from Turkey.
DOL seeking more authority in crackdown on child labor violations
The Department of Labor has stepped up its enforcement of child labor law amid a concerning rise in child labor exploitation, yet the agency acknowledges its resources are not great enough to be a significant deterrent for such misconduct.
Child labor violations are on the rise in U.S. Are they in your supply chain?
The compliance community has not been spending time addressing a problem mistakenly thought to be a rarity: The proliferation of child labor violations occurring in the United States.
EU to ban sale of products made with forced labor
The European Union announced an agreement to ban products made with forced labor, a decision that will oblige organizations to track and declare more information about their supply chains for goods entering EU markets.
Best practices for determining need for a human rights policy
Does your business need a human rights policy? An increasing number of organizations believe they do, according to research firm Gartner.
Walmart shares successes behind supplier emissions reduction initiative
Retail giant Walmart announced the completion of an initiative to reduce emissions in its supply chain six years earlier than its intended target.
Q&A: ManpowerGroup compliance director on CSRD prep efforts
James Levey, compliance director at global recruitment agency ManpowerGroup, discusses with Compliance Week his focus on preparing the group’s European operations to gather the data required for compliance with the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive.
Ten things I’d like to see happen in 2024
Election years in the United States, United Kingdom, and at European Parliament, along with ongoing geopolitical tensions, make 2024 difficult to predict—aside from the expectation compliance officers will be busy.
Compliance with CSRD, CS3D, national laws an EU balancing act
Companies could be in danger of failing to comply with a raft of social responsibility-minded legislation at the European Union and national level because they might mistakenly think duties on corporates overlap when they do not.