US blacklists Thailand over child, forced labour

The US has pushed forward a law allowing tough measures on manufacturers who reportedly use children or forced labour, a senior official said yesterday.

Labour Protection and Welfare Department chief Amporn Nitisiri said the US Labour Department had issued a list of countries, which says that Thailand uses child or forced labour in the productions of shrimps, textiles, sugar cane and pornographic materials. She went on to say that US legislators had also proposed the Customs Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Reauthorization Act, which bans the import of goods made by children, forced labourers or victims of human trafficking.

Meanwhile, the labour protection department is consulting with the Foreign and Commerce ministries on how to respond to these accusations and get Thailand removed from the list, she said. The department is also going to host a conference about the impact of selling goods made by child or forced labour on December 14 in Bangkok. The event, meant for Thai employers in the shrimp and textile industries, will be cosponsored by the International Labour Organisation.

Amporn confirmed that under Thai law, children under the age of 15 are prohibited from employment, and that those between 15 and 18 years of age can only be employed if official permission is sought first. She said that it might appear as if young children are being used in factories because some foreign workers bring their children to work - something that needs to be explained to US authorities.