Pressemeldungen - Unternehmensverantwortung & Lieferkettengesetz

Decency instead of exploitation as a lettering on an outstretched hand

Clearcutting the Supply Chain Act? Federal government plans to take 95% of companies out of responsibility

Press release of the Supply Chain Act initiative, of which FEMNET is a member.

In yesterday's meeting of the coalition committee, the party leaders of the CDU/CSU and SPD decided to massively restrict the scope of the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) in the context of the CSDDD implementation - a potentially illegal step with far-reaching consequences for the protection of human rights and the environment.

The Supply Chain Act initiative strongly criticises this decision. With an adaptation to the scope of the EU Supply Chain Directive, the Supply Chain Act would only apply to companies with more than 5,000 employees and an annual net turnover of EUR 1.5 billion, which would exclude about 95 percent of the German companies hitherto covered by the LkSG from the law in the future. The law would then only apply to an estimated 150 companies headquartered in Germany. 

Prohibitions of regression under both international and European law make such a reduction, according to legal experts In all likelihood illegalThis would severely limit the protection of human rights. 

Sofie Kreusch, Coordinator of the Supply Chain Act Initiative comments: “The Supply Chain Act works. Workers and trade unions around the world have already been able to Many successes for better working conditionsFight it. A reduction in the scope of application would deprive many of those affected of exactly this possibility and is thus a slap in the face of all trade unions and workers worldwide. How the SPD leadership can agree to this is not comprehensible.

Chancellor Merz pretends to act in the interests of the German economy. But the decision is purely symbolic: The root causes of Germany’s economic weakness – such as ailing infrastructure, shortages of skilled workers, high energy prices and lack of investment – are not being tackled. Instead, the federal government is creating new uncertainty for precisely those companies that have made significant investments in construction in recent years. Legally sound due diligence structures  have done so.’ 

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The Supply Chain Act initiative It is supported by more than 90 human rights organisations, environmental associations, trade unions, church and development policy organisations.