Goods produced by incarcerated US workers are likely bypassing import prohibitions, infiltrating Canada’s supply chains, and unlawfully winding up in Canadian markets, according to a recent report from the University of Toronto’s International Human Rights Program (IHRP).
“This report pulls back the curtain on potentially illegal imports,” said Sandra Wisner, IHRP director, in a news release.
IHRP’s report – “Exports & Exploitation: U.S. Prison Labour Hidden in Canadian Supply Chains” – revealed that this possibly large-scale problem impacted various goods and materials, including auto parts, food products, party supplies, and pet food.
IHRP, part of the University of Toronto’s Henry N. R. Jackman Faculty of Law, said its report called attention to rising concerns worldwide regarding modern slavery in international trade and the urgent necessity for governments and businesses to align supply chains with international human rights standards.
IHRP shared that US prisons currently detain the most individuals compared with their counterparts worldwide, with a grossly disproportionate number of prisoners being Black. IHRP added that the US forces some to work under coercive conditions and without worker protections or farm on former plantations that used to have enslaved workers.
IHRP noted that Canada prohibits the importation of goods produced through forced or prison labour and faced pressure from the US to enforce these bans to reject goods associated with forced labour in China’s Xinjiang region.
However, IHRP said products made using exploitative US prison labour practices managed to infiltrate the channels of commerce, cross the border, and enter Canada’s economy through its close trade relationship with the US.
“Canadians should not have to worry that the food they eat or the cars they drive are linked to prison labour,” said Nabila Khan, IHRP research associate.
IHRP pointed out that some companies utilizing incarcerated labour were themselves Canadian.
Recommendations
IHRP’s report urged Canada’s federal and provincial governments to enforce the importation prohibition effectively, including by:
- spreading awareness of the bans, particularly among Canadian companies
- ensuring that the CBSA proactively investigates imports by manufacturers or from places of origin with a high risk of using forced and/or prison labour
- establishing a transparent public complaint and reporting system for the CBSA to make regular reports on the number and nature of complaints received, investigations launched, and investigation outcomes
- facilitating inter-agency cooperation and training among the CBSA, Employment and Social Development Canada, Global Affairs Canada, and other departments
IHRP’s report also asked governments to expand the bans to cover all goods produced by businesses known to use forced and/or prison labour or include it in supply chains.
“The Canadian Border Services Agency must proactively investigate and block imports linked to forced or prison labour—especially from high-risk regions and manufacturers,” Khan said in IHRP’s news release. “At the same time, companies must step up with serious human rights due diligence to root out exploitation across their entire supply chains.”
IHRP’s report also recommended that Canadian companies:
- implement and follow internal policies preventing the importation of goods produced through forced and/or prison labour
- adopt policies banning subcontracting companies hiring incarcerated workers and buying goods made using forced and/or prison labour in the US
- have robust human rights due diligence policies to identify and abolish forced and/or prison labour from supply chains
- establish a transparent mechanism for reporting their human rights due diligence efforts
“It’s time for government and business to confront a hard truth: our economy must not profit from modern slavery or racial injustice,” Wisner said. “This is also an opportunity to lead—to build a Canadian economy rooted in human rights, not exploitation.”