22 Amendments of Isabel CARVALHAIS related to 2022/0269(COD)
Amendment 70 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1
Recital 1
(1) As recognised in the Preamble to the 2014 Protocol to Convention No. 29 on forced labour (‘ILO Convention No. 29’) of the International Labour Organization (‘ILO’), forced labour constitutes a serious violation of human dignity and fundamental human rights. The ILO declared the elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour as a principle concerning the fundamental rights. The ILO classifies ILO Convention No. 29, the 2014 Protocol to Convention No. 29 and the ILO Convention No.105 on the abolition of forced labour (‘ILO Convention No.105’) as fundamental ILO Conventions16. Forced labour covers a wide variety of coercive labour practices where work or service , mainly in productive sectors, such as processing, agriculture and fisheries, in particular in third countries involved in trading relations with the EU,or service, such as transportation, storage, cleaning or logistics,is exacted from persons that have not offered it themselves voluntarily.17 _________________ 16 https://www.ilo.org/global/standards/introd uction-to-international-labour- standards/conventions-and- recommendations/lang--en/index.htm. 17 The ILO definition of forced labour according to the ILO Forced Labour Convention, 19230 (No. 29), What is forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking (Forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking) (ilo.org).
Amendment 72 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1 a (new)
Recital 1 a (new)
(1a) Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 1380/2013 requires, inter alia, fishing activities to be managed in a way that is consistent with the objectives of achieving economic, social and employment benefits, as well as to ensure a level- playing field and a culture of compliance within the Union. Fishing activities conducted with the use of forced labour undermine the achievement of these CFP objectives. In addition, they contribute to creating unfair competition among operators, in particular due to lower costs resulting from the use of social sub- standards, and increase the risk of fishery products made with such exploitative practices entering the EU market. For those reasons, fisheries control rules should be strengthened to provide for effective, dissuasive and proportionate penalties, including the attribution of points, against those committing fishing activities with the use of forced labour.
Amendment 73 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1 b (new)
Recital 1 b (new)
Amendment 77 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) All Member States have ratified the fundamental ILO Conventions on forced labour and child labour.20, while some of them have not yet ratified the 2014 Protocol to Convention No. 29, which guarantees victims protection and access to appropriate and effective remedies, such as compensation.They are therefore legally obliged to prevent and eliminate the use of forced labour and to report regularly to the ILO. _________________ 20 https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public /---europe/---ro-geneva/---ilo- brussels/documents/publication/wcms_195 135.pdf.
Amendment 82 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 17
Recital 17
(17) The prohibitionimport and export ban of products and services should contribute to the international efforts to abolish forced labour. The definition of ‘forced labour’ should therefore be aligned with the definition laid down in ILO Convention No. 29. The definition of ‘forced labour applied by state authorities’ should be aligned with ILO Convention No. 105, which prohibits specifically the use of forced labour as punishment for the expression of political views, for the purposes of economic development, as a means of labour discipline, as a punishment for participation in strikes, or as a means of racial, religious or other discrimination.31 _________________ 31 What is forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking (Forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking) (ilo.org) and the ILO Conventions No. 29 and No. 105 referred therein.
Amendment 85 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) The competent authorities of the Member States and the European Commission should monitor the market to identify violations of the prohibition. In appointing those competent authorities, Member States should ensure that those authorities have sufficient resources and that their staff has the necessary competences and knowledge, especially with regard to human rights, value chain management and due diligence processes. Competent authorities should closely coordinate with national labour inspections and judicial and law enforcement authorities, including those responsible for the fight against trafficking in human beings in such a way as to avoid jeopardising investigations by such authorities.
Amendment 86 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 20
Recital 20
(20) In order to increase the effectiveness of the prohibition, competent authorities should grant reasonable timeand the European Comission should grant 30 working days to economic operators to identify, mitigate, prevent and bring to an end the risk of forced labour.
Amendment 87 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 22
Recital 22
(22) Before initiating an investigation, competent authorities should request from the economic operators under assessment information on actions taken to mitigate, prevent or, bring to an end risks ofand remediate forced labour in their operations and value chains with respect to the products under assessment. Carrying out such due diligence in relation to forced labour should help the economic operator to be at a lower risk of having forced labour in its operations and value chains. Appropriate due diligence means that forced labour issues in the value chain have been identified and addressed in accordance with relevant Union legislation and international standards. That implies that where the competent authority considers that there is no substantiated concern of a violation of the prohibition, for instance due to, but not limited to the applicable legislation, guidelines, recommendations or any other due diligence in relation to forced labour being applied in a way that mitigates, prevents and brings to an end the risk of forced labour, no investigation should be initiated.
Amendment 89 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 24
Recital 24
(24) During the preliminary phase of investigation, competent authoritiesCompetent authorities and the European Commission should focus on the economic operators involved in the steps of the value chain where there is a higher risk of forced labour with respect to the products or services under investigation, also taking into account their size and economic resources, the quantity of products or services concerned and the scale of the suspected forced labour.
Amendment 90 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 25
Recital 25
(25) Competent authorities, when requesting information during the investigation, should prioritise to the extent possible and consistent with the effective conduct of the investigation the economic operators under investigation that are involved in the steps of the value chain as close as possible to where the likely risk of forced labour occurs and take into account the size and economic resources of the economic operators, the quantity of products and services concerned, as well as the scale of suspected forced labour.
Amendment 91 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 26
Recital 26
(26) Competent authorities and the European Commission should bear the burden of establishing that forced labour has been used at any stage of production, manufacture, harvest or extraction of a product, including working or processing related to the product on the basis of all information and evidence gathered during the investigation, including its preliminary phase. To ensure their right to due process, economic operators should have the opportunity to provide information in their defence to the competent authorities throughout the investigation. When the products and services originate from high-risk areas, as established in the database, the economic operators should bear the burden of proof that forced labour has not been used at any stage of the value chain.
Amendment 94 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 27
Recital 27
(27) CWhen competent authorities thatand the European Commission establish that economic operators violated the prohibition, they should without delay prohibit the placing and making available of such products or services on the Union market and their export from the Union, and require the economic operators that have been investigated to withdraw the relevant products already made available from the Union market and have them destroyed, rendered inoperable, or otherwis. These products should be made available in the interest of charitable organisations, that benefits public interests, or should be recycled and ultimately, if none of the above work, should be disposed of, in accordance with national law consistent with Union law, including Union legislation on waste management, following a cascading principle.
Amendment 96 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 30
Recital 30
(30) If the economic operators fail to comply with the decision of the competent authorities by the end of the established timeframe, the competent authorities should ensure that the relevant products are prohibited from being placed or made available on the Union market, exported or withdrawn from the Union market and that any such products remaining with the relevant economic operators are destroyed, rendered inoperable, or otherwisshould be made available in the interest of charitable organisations, that benefits public interests, or should be recycled and ultimately, if none of the above work, should be disposed of, in accordance with national law consistent with Union law, including Union legislation on waste management at the expense of the economic operators, following a cascading principle.
Amendment 101 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) ‘forced labour imposed by state authorities’ means the use of forced labour: - as described ina means of political coercion or education or as a punishment for holding or expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political, social or economic system; - as a method of mobilising and using labour for purposes of economic development; - as a means of labour discipline; - as a punishment for having participated in strikes;or - as a means of racial, social, national or religious discrimination, in accordance with Article 1 of the Convention on the Abolition of Forced Labour, 1957 (No. 105) of the International Labour Organization;
Amendment 102 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point c
(c) ‘due diligence in relation to forced labour’ means the efforts by an economic operator to implement mandatory requirements, voluntary guidelines, recommendations or practices to identify, prevent, mitigate or bring to an end the use ofand remediate forced labour in its operations and value chain, with respect to its products and services that are to be made available on the Union market or to be exported, whereby bringing to an end forced labour does not mean disengagement as first resort;
Amendment 108 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4
Article 4
Amendment 110 #
3. Before initiating an investigation in accordance with Article 5(1), the competent authority shall request from the economic operators under assessment information on actions taken to identify, prevent, mitigate or bring to an end risks ofand remediate forced labour in their operations and value chains with respect to the products and services under assessment, including on the basis of any of the following:
Amendment 119 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1
Article 6 – paragraph 1
1. Competent authorities shall assess all information and evidence gathered pursuant to Articles 4 and 5 and, on that basis, establish whether Article 3 has been violated, within a reasonable period of time30 working days from the date they initiated the investigation pursuant to Article 5(1).
Amendment 127 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 11 – title
Article 11 – title
Database of forced labour risk areas or products
Amendment 130 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 11 – paragraph 1
Article 11 – paragraph 1
1. The Commission shall call upon external expertise to provide an indicative, non-exhaustive, verifiable and regularly updated database of forced labour risks in specific geographic areas or with respect to specific products including with regard to forced labour imposed by state authorities. The database shall be based on the guidelines referred to in Article 23, points (a), (b) and (c), and relevant external sources of information from, amongst others, international organisations and third country authorities. This database shall be easily accessible.
Amendment 142 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – title
Article 24 – title
Union Network Against Forced Labour Products
Amendment 144 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 1
Article 24 – paragraph 1
1. A Union Network Against Forced Labour Products (‘the Network’) is established. The Network shall be lead by the European Commission and shall serve as a platform for structured coordination and cooperation between the competent authorities of the Member States and the Commission, and to streamline the practices of enforcement of this Regulation within the Union, thereby making enforcement more effective and coherent.