Femnet e.V.

FEMNET
Kaiser-Friedrich-Straße 11
53113 Bonn
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Mr
Axel Voss, MEP
ASP 15 E 146
Rue Wiertz
B-1047 Brussels

Bonn, 20/01/2023

Human rights and environmental protection in supply chains: Why do you want to make the EU project ineffective, Mr Voss?

Dear Mr Voss,

We address you as a women’s rights organisation that has been working with non-governmental organisations in Bangladesh and India to improve working conditions in the garment industry for over 15 years. The seamstresses work under sometimes bad conditions: Gender-based violence in the workplace, from verbal harassment to rape and murder, minimum wages you can't live on, forced overtime, prevention of works councils.

The EU has a historic opportunity to put an end to these conditions with an effective EU supply chain law that protects women's rights in particular. Last year, the Commission and the Council took a position on the project. What matters now is the position of the European Parliament. But we are appalled by the proposals that you and other representatives of the European People's Party (EPP) have put forward in the Committee on Legal Affairs. Your proposals would make the project almost ineffective. Even the already patchy German supply chain law would then have to be further weakened.

Together with an alliance of 130 development, environmental, human rights and trade unions, FEMNET believes: It must no longer be worthwhile for companies to do business on the backs of people and the environment. We therefore advocate an effective EU supply chain law. For us, this means: It must, without exception, cover the entire value chain. It must have a preventive effect, i.e. prevent human and women's rights violations, environmental and climate damage before they occur. The aforementioned seamstresses must be given the opportunity to claim damages from the companies that harmed them before civil courts in the EU.

The proposals you put forward in the Committee on Legal Affairs would have the opposite effect. According to you, the EU Supply Chain Act should not be fully applied in the Member States until 2033 – far too late. In full, the due diligence obligations should only apply with regard to direct business partners, as in the case of German law. Companies should only become more active in the supply chain when they learn of human rights violations there. This means: If the damage has already occurred. This is how rape occurred in India in 2021 and subsequent Murder of a textile workerProduced for H&M. It is only through strong supply chain due diligence that European companies can be prevented from indirectly supporting such maladministration through their operations.

Modern slavery also occurs in Europe, e.g. in fruit and vegetable cultivation. The due diligence obligations of companies must not extend, as requested by you, only to the territory outside Europe!

You want to completely exclude the downstream supply chain and the financial sector. This means: The export of toxic pesticides or weapons would still be possible. Investments in mining projects that lead to massive human rights violations and environmental damage would also not be sanctioned. You want to remove climate protection measures from the Directive. Even in view of the ever-increasing climate crisis, these demands are absolutely unacceptable to us.

You and other representatives of the EPP are in principle in favour of civil liability of companies for damages caused. In practice, however, the limitation of liability to intentional or grossly negligent action proposed by you would make it almost impossible for data subjects to successfully claim damages before a court in the EU, especially since data subjects do not have access to internal company documents. Even those who lose their livelihood as a result of the behaviour of a European company would generally not receive any compensation. Instead of strengthening those affected, the proposals you put forward create insurmountable hurdles.

FEMNET considers it threatening to obtain free tickets for companies that can be certified or are part of a multistakeholder initiative. These proposed by some Members Safe harbour solutions are loopholes. Certifications and memberships in MSI must not be used to defer companies' due diligence obligations to certifiers or to prevent companies from being held liable for slight negligence.

Dear Mr Voss, why would you like to make the EU Supply Chain Act ineffective? The protection of people/women's rights, the environment and the climate must not be a fair weather issue, but must also be a top priority in times of crisis. We appeal to you: Please reconsider your proposals for the planned EU Supply Chain Act and advocate for an effective regulation!

Yours sincerely,

Dr. Gisela Burckhardt
Chairman of the Board of FEMNET