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Child labor in the Congolese cobalt mine
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Thomas Coombes / Amnesty International / dpa
The Bundestag has passed the controversial supply chain law, which makes large companies more responsible than before for conditions at their global suppliers. In a roll-call vote, 412 MPs voted for the law, 159 voted against it and 59 abstained. During the final deliberation in parliament, the Greens announced that they would vote with the government factions of the CDU / CSU and SPD. FDP and AfD spoke out against it, the left wanted to abstain.
From 2023, large companies in Germany will be obliged to take action against human rights violations and environmental violations at their suppliers.
Failure to do so can result in fines of up to two percent of annual sales.
Initially, it applies to corporations with more than 3,000 employees - and thus around 925 companies.
From 2024, companies with over 1000 employees are also to be included, which affects around 4800 companies.
Federal Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD) said in the Bundestag that politics must take action against child labor.
"Children belong in schools and not in mines." The supply chain law sets clear standards for companies.
Development Aid Minister Gerd Müller (CSU) said the law came about against strong lobby pressure.
In the interests of business, the Union had enforced that there is no additional civil liability for companies. Corporations would have legal and planning security, so representatives of the Union parliamentary group. The AfD criticized that competitors of German companies were the winners of the law. The left argued that because there was no civil liability, the law was too weak and made too few companies accountable.
Franziska Humbert, Oxfam expert for business and human rights, described the law as a minimal solution. "Today's decision is a success because human rights in business are finally protected by law," she said. "At least in theory." Unfortunately, the law has major loopholes. "For example, it does not contain a claim for damages with which workers who toil on banana, grape or tea plantations can sue supermarket chains responsible for damage suffered in front of German courts," complained Humbert.
In addition, according to the law, companies initially only have to take care of their immediate suppliers.
In the food supply chain, however, they are mostly located in Germany and not where, for example, child labor is the order of the day.
"This is not only inconsistent, it even falls behind the practice of many companies that are also involved in the countries where their products are produced," said Humbert.
ssu / dpa / Reuters
