More protection against exploitation: In the global textile industry, companies could be more easily held liable for failures in the future.
Photo: dpa / KM Assad
“We are at the end of a long road, but also at the beginning of a new one,” said the EU Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders, on Wednesday in Brussels at the presentation of the directive on the sustainability obligations of companies. “Because we can no longer ignore our supply chains – we need a change in our economic model.” After two years of discussion, companies are to be obliged in future to identify and eliminate the negative effects of their production on human rights, such as child labor and exploitation, and on the environment.
Specifically, the draft provides for several limits. Only companies that generate annual sales of more than 150 million euros worldwide and have more than 500 employees are included. There are stricter rules for companies working in sectors where the risk of exploitation and environmental degradation is particularly high. The limit of 250 employees applies here. These include the textile industry, mining and agriculture. Member States should set rules for civil liability and can also impose fines. In addition, a complaints procedure must be set up. The EU Commission is thus going beyond the national laws in France and Germany.
So far, there are no reliable figures for how many companies the new directive applies to. The EU Commission speaks of around 13,000 EU companies and 4,000 companies from third countries.
Employers’ associations reacted negatively. “The draft clearly overshoots the target,” said Dirk Jandura, President of the Federal Association of Wholesale, Foreign Trade, Services, in Berlin. He even left the “already problematic” German supply chain law behind. “As expected, environmental and climate protection measures are now also being prescribed. In particular, we expressly reject the planned liability under civil law,” says Jandura. The Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) also warned against overloading German companies. “There is a risk of enormous effort and high costs – for comparatively little effect,” said DIHK President Peter Adrian of the German Press Agency.
On the other hand, the “Supply Chain Law Initiative” alliance, in which trade unions and environmental organizations are represented, welcomed the draft and spoke of a “foundation for less exploitation and environmental destruction”. However, he does not go far enough, due diligence should not only apply to large companies. The industrial policy spokesman for the left-wing faction in the Bundestag, Alexander Ulrich, also demanded that “the reach must be expanded, not only the largest corporations have to take on more responsibility”.
The proposal will now be presented to the EU Parliament and the Council. If accepted, states have two years to implement it.