US Department of Labor seeks comments on 3 international child labor and forced labor reports

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs today published in the Federal Register a request for information seeking public comments and relevant information to assist the department in updating three reports released in 2010 on child labor and forced labor in foreign countries.

Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor, a report mandated by the Trade and Development Act of 2000, assesses the worst forms of child labor and government efforts to address them in countries that benefit from U.S. trade preferences. The List of Goods Produced by Child or Forced Labor is required by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005. In addition, the department prepares the current List of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labor under Executive Order 13126 of 1999.

Under the request for information, ILAB is seeking public comments and information on topics related to:

• Updating the findings and suggestions for government action in countries reviewed in the TDA report.
• The nature and extent of child labor, forced labor, and forced or indentured child labor in the production of goods in foreign countries.
• Government, industry or third-party actions and initiatives to address the above issues.

The department will consider data sources up to five years old, so information submissions should clearly indicate the time periods involved. All submissions are due by May 20, 2011. They may be made by mail to the Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human Trafficking, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Room S-5317, Washington, DC 20210; through the federal e-rulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov, Docket No. DOL-2011-0002; via email to Tina McCarter at mccarter.tina@dol.gov; or by fax to 202-693-4830.

ILAB conducts research on and formulates international economic, trade and labor policies in collaboration with other U.S. government agencies, and provides international technical assistance in support of U.S. foreign-labor policy objectives. Copies of the reports and frequently asked questions are available at http://www.dol.gov/ilab/highlights/if-20101215.htm.