Supply Chain Act: a Tool against Child Labour

World Day against Child Labour: Once again we are campaigning for the German Supply Chain Act. Because children are still working under exploitative conditions in tobacco growing. The German Supply Chain Act and the EU Corporate Due Diligence Directive are very important tools for putting an end to this practice.

Millions of children around the world are still working under exploitative conditions, including in tobacco growing. Reports from all major tobacco-growing countries such as Brazil, Indonesia and Malawi reveal that children from the age of five are working in tobacco fields, often under dangerous and unhealthy working conditions. Our new background article shows that children come into contact with pesticides, work with dangerous tools and in extreme heat, carry heavy loads and are exposed to the risk of nicotine poisoning when harvesting the green tobacco leaves.

The tobacco industry continues to profit from these exploitative conditions, while the children themselves have to put their health, their education and their future at risk. This is primarily caused by the low prices for leaf tobacco, making it difficult for tobacco-growing families to earn a living. The earnings are usually so low that there is no money left to pay workers and therefore families have to use the unpaid labour of children.

How to prevent child labour in tobacco growing?

The German Supply Chain Act (LkSG) is an important step towards combating exploitation and child labour in global supply chains. It obliges companies in Germany to review their supply chains for human rights violations, including child labour, and to take action against such violations. Since 2024, the law also applies to cigarette companies in Germany with more than 1,000 employees: Japan Tobacco International GmbH, Philip Morris GmbH and Reemtsma Cigarettenfariken GmbH. These companies must identify the risks in their supply chains, take measures to prevent child labour – for example by ensuring higher prices for leaf tobacco which in turn leads to living wages and better working conditions – and create transparency. The LkSG thus helps to prevent child labour and promote decent working conditions.

How does this relate to the EU Due Diligence Directive?

The European Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (EU CSDDD) came into force in July 2024 following intensive negotiations. In many areas, it sets higher standards than the German Supply Chain Act: the risk analysis, for example, must also proactively include the beginning of the supply chain. It also expands the requirements for companies by extending the human rights frame of reference to include the Convention on the Rights of the Child, among others. This therefore also includes the children’s rights to education, health and protection from economic exploitation that are affected in tobacco cultivation. Consequently, the responsibility of companies to prevent child labour will be enshrined in national supply chain laws in all EU member states in future: the European directive must be transposed into national law by 2026.

The German Supply Chain Act is on the brink

The two legal regulations are among the greatest achievements for human rights and climate and environmental protection in recent years. However, a month ago, German Chancellor Merz not only announced his intention to abolish the German Supply Chain Act (LkSG), but also spoke out clearly against the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (EU CSDDD).

This development jeopardises progress in the fight against exploitation and for decent working conditions. We urgently call on Chancellor Merz to support the preservation of the German Supply Chain Act and the effective implementation of the EU CSDDD. After all, in its coalition agreement, the new German government clearly committed to implementing the EU CSDDD.

Without a supply chain law, we risk reverting to an economy in which exploitation and environmental destruction are seen as a competitive advantage.