List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor

There are reports that children from Bolivia are forced to produce garments in informal workshops in the city of Buenos Aires and its surrounding municipalities. According to media outlets, NGOs, and government officials, some children from Bolivia are victims of deceptive recruitment and trafficking with false promises of decent working conditions and fair wages. Once in Argentina, these children have restricted freedom of movement, their identity documents are confiscated, they live and work within locked factories, and they are too fearful to leave due to threats of imprisonment. Some end up in conditions of bonded labor, in debt for fees that were charged for transport to Argentina, and are prohibited from leaving their workplaces for years until the debt is paid through wage deductions. These children suffer physical and verbal abuse from their employers, and are only given one meal per day. Some children are forced to work excessive hours, up to 20 hours per day.

Spanish translation

There are reports that adults are working under forced labor conditions to produce garments in Bangladesh. Multiple surveys have reported that workers in the Ready-Made Garment (RMG) industry are subjected to excessive working hours beyond what is legally allowed, forced overtime, and withholding compensation. Furthermore, workers are subjected to physical and verbal abuse for not meeting targets. Women are often victims of physical and sexual abuse, including as punishment for not meeting targets.

Bengali Translation

There is evidence that adults, primarily women, are forced to work in garment factories in Burma, particularly in the city of Yangon. Reports from NGOs and media organizations suggest that forced labor is widespread in the garment sector, which employs an estimated 500,000 workers. Workers engaged in garment production are forced to work unpaid overtime and are threatened with financial penalties or dismissal if they refuse to work overtime without pay. Sources report that upwards of 80,000 workers have been forced to work unpaid overtime since the military coup in 2021. Workers reported physical violence and verbal harassment by supervisors.

Burmese Translation

ILAB has reason to believe that cotton thread/yarn, cotton textiles, and cotton garments produced in China are made with an input produced with forced labor—specifically cotton harvested in China. Cotton from China is on ILAB’s List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor for forced labor, child labor, and forced child labor. About 85% of China’s cotton and 20% of the world’s cotton is produced in the XUAR, where research has shown it is harvested and processed under conditions of forced labor. In China, this cotton is spun into cotton thread/yarn and textiles and may be mixed with cotton from other sources. Manufacturers in China source large volumes of cotton fabrics containing Xinjiang origin cotton to produce finished garments. It is likely that products of Xinjiang-origin cotton produced further downstream, such as garments, textiles, and other cotton-based products, may be produced with an input produced with forced labor.

There are reports that children, most between the ages of 8-17, are forced to produce garments in India. Based on the most recently available data from NGOs, up to 100,000 children throughout the country are being forced to produce garments. Recent reports suggest that forced child labor has shifted from factories to home-based production and from urban to suburban areas, particularly in southern India. Dalit and scheduled caste children, a socially disadvantaged class in India, are particularly vulnerable to forced labor in this industry. Many children are trafficked into garment production, recruited under deceptive terms, moved between employers without consent, and paid little or nothing for their work. Some children, as young as age five, are recruited for work through an advance payment to their parents, creating a situation of debt bondage which the child must work to repay. The children are isolated, often live at the worksite, and face restricted freedom of movement. Some children are exposed to dye and toxic chemicals without protective equipment; and some are forced to work overtime, even when they are sick. Some children are punished and threatened with verbal and physical abuse, financial penalty, and some are routinely deprived of food, water, and sleep. The children are forced to perform tasks including stitching, dyeing, cutting, sewing buttons, and embellishing garments. 

Hindi translation

There is evidence that migrant workers in Mauritius are exploited under forced labor conditions in the garment sector. Workers are charged unlawful recruitment fees, causing them to go into debt to repay recruiters. Workers are deceived about employment conditions, such as being told that employers would provide food and accommodation, only to find that fees for these were deducted from their wages and their passports were withheld. Some workers live in employers’ substandard accommodations which may be overcrowded, improperly ventilated, and include insect infestations. Reports indicate that workers may not be free to leave their workplace or accommodation and may be induced to work mandatory overtime. Employers have been known to intimidate or use deportation threats against workers who question their pay, make formal complaints, or speak with auditors about these conditions.