AIAG provides forced labour guidance for Mexican automotive supply chains
The Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) has released guidance on forced labour requirements in Mexico for the automotive industry.
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The group, which recently had six OEMs come together to
require suppliers to complete new forced labour due diligence using the AIAG
Due Diligence Reporting Template (DDRT), said that Mexico will prohibit goods
made with forced labour.
In the guidance, published on AIAG’s website, the group said
that the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare will determine whether goods were
made with forced labour, and if so, a resolution will be published on the
ministry’s website meaning that the goods covered will no longer be accepted
into the country.
Unlike the US, Mexico will not pre-emptively stop imports,
and will carry out detentions only after examinations are completed.
Importers of the goods have the opportunity to submit
information to rebut allegations of forced labour, and a decision will be made
within six months of this being filed, and can be extended to one year.
Under the USMCA, which is up for review next year, Mexico announced
a resolution to ban the importation of goods produced with forced labour,
effective since May 2023. The regulation means that Mexican citizens or
companies can submit a petition to prohibit goods produced by forced labour.
The petition will then be reviewed and investigated by Mexico’s ministry, and
the government of Mexico can also independently initiate an investigation.
Tanya Bolden, vice-president of supply chain and corporate
responsibility for products and services at AIAG, told Automotive Logistics:
“Geopolitical issues are so very unpredictable at present, enforcement measures
can be a barometer.”
At Automotive Logistics and Supply Chain Global last month,
she said that “every entity within our supply chain is important, and the OEMs
or anyone that is importing must have that visibility,” adding that “we’re only
as strong as our weakest link”.
She stressed that rather than OEMs mandating a specific
tool, they just need suppliers to use something to prove due diligence. If
suppliers use the AIAG’s DDRT, she said, it allows OEMs to "analyse, have
questions and start a dialogue with you to identify if your system is robust
enough to protect you" as well as the OEM and the full supply chain. "And that's the important part, starting
that dialogue, getting that visibility for the supplier to know that when you
have a red flag when an issue pops up," she said.
At ALSC Mexico, from 11-13 November, experts from the US Customs and Border Protection and OEMs including GM, will come together on the panel 'Free-flowing freight: Streamlining Mexico’s customs, inspection and compliance' to discuss how Mexico is accelerating international trade and improving cross-border efficiency by modernising customs and inspection services, and how manufacturers are managing evolving supply chain compliance rules to move automotive freight seamlessly and competitively.
Register now for the event!
