Malaysian glove makers on alert over 'forced labour' claims in supply chain

Malaysian glove makers are on alert over allegations of forced labour in their supply chain following a raid on a local printing factory last month.

This comes after a US ban on the import of disposable rubber gloves from Malaysia's WRP Asia Pacific Sdn Bhd as it believed the company was involved in forced labour.

Authorities had in September raided Klang-based Tiong Tat Printing Industry Sdn Bhd. The company is linked to Hartalega, the world’s largest nitrile glove producer.

"Yes, we can confirm that Tiong Tat is a supplier of packaging materials to Hartalega," said the company in an e-mailed statement.

In reassuring that social compliance was of utmost priority to Hartalega, the company's spokesperson today said immediate actions were taken to seek clarification from Tiong Tat following news reports of the raid.

"Tiong Tat promptly responded via formal correspondence informing us that officials from the relevant authorities visited Tiong Tat on Sept 17.

"In a subsequent update, they assured us that they extended their full cooperation to the relevant authorities and this specific matter has been concluded," said Hartalega's spokesperson.

A source from the Labour Department, however, told Malaysiakini today that investigations against Tiong Tat were still ongoing and no decision has so far been made as to whether to press charges or otherwise.

The raid and ongoing investigations were partly prompted by Bangladesh-daily Kaler Kantho and Malaysiakini's special report that quoted two former Tiong Tat workers as having had fled their employers and forced to seek refuge in the jungles amidst alleged mistreatment

Quizzed on whether Hartalega was looking into the option of changing its supplier for packaging boxes, the spokesperson said: "As mentioned, since Tiong Tat has informed us that this specific matter has been concluded with the relevant authorities, the company continues to be a supplier to Hartalega at this juncture in time."

"At the same time, we are conscious that there is always room for improvement and we will continue to engage with Tiong Tat to ensure progress is achieved in closing any gaps and improving their social compliance practices."

At the company level, Hartalega stressed its commitment against unethical practices including use of forced labour, as well as to meet requirements set by the Labour Department and global standards under the ILO. 

"Hartalega’s social compliance policy is aligned with international benchmarks against forced labour as well as against child labour and young workers and workplace discrimination.

"Having made significant progress within our organisation, plans are underway to extend this commitment to our suppliers," said the spokesperson.

The company also revealed that the plan will entail a larger scope of social compliance audits as well as coming up with a code of conduct for suppliers.

"Along with regular audits by various parties on social compliance, we are taking a long-term and sustainable approach to social compliance.

"To this end, we are in the process of gaining membership with reputable organisations such as Supplier Ethical Data Exchange (Sedex) and Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (Wrap) by the end of this year," said the spokesperson.

Last month, The Edge Financial Daily quoted Hartalega managing director Kuan Mun Leong as saying the US remains as the company's core market - accounting for 54 percent of over 28 billion pieces of rubber gloves sold for the financial year ended March 31, 2019.

'More glove manufacturers have ties with Tiong Tat'

The raid on Tiong Tat's premises has also raised an alarm with other major Malaysian disposable glove producers that source their packing boxes from the company.

International migrant worker rights specialist Andy Hall said he had raised the issue with another Klang-based company, Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd, and was subsequently told that Tiong Tat was a supplier of its boxes.

"There continues to be extremely high risks of forced labour facing major Malaysian glove exporters and their international buyers," said Hall who focuses on exposing alleged forced labour practises in Malaysia and Thailand.

Malaysiakini has contacted Kossan for comments on the matter. 

Beyond internal mechanisms put in place at their main premises, Hall said glove manufacturers have a duty to ensure their entire supply chain - from sourcing of raw materials to production of all other components that make up the final product - is free of forced labour.

"Major Malaysian export companies, like those in the rubber gloves industry, are responsible for and should also be held accountable for the actions and omissions of their suppliers and supply chain actors.

"As are the international buyers likewise responsible for and to be held accountable for the actions and omissions of their Malaysian suppliers and supply chains too," Hall told Malaysiakini.

Human Resource Minister M Kulasegaran (above) told a townhall session with rubber glove industry players on Oct 4 - which was also attended by US Embassy officials - that the ministry could assist employers to carry out a comprehensive social compliance audit in line with international standards which come into force in 2021.

On Oct 1, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency announced that it had issued "Withhold Release Orders" for five different products imported from five different countries, including Malaysia, that were suspected of being manufactured using forced labour. - Mkini