THE TRANSFORMATION OF SHEIN’S WORD
SHEIN, a fast fashion brand, has been accused for years of practicing forced labor. SHEIN has been in the spotlight more in comparison to other brands in the typical allegations in the fast-fashion industry regarding the practice of forced labor.
Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 makes sure that no items enter the United States if forced labor is of high suspicion during any part of the production. As a result of this Tariff Act, The Uyghur Forced Prevention Act (UFLPA) enforces that no items, specifically from Xinjiang, are to enter the United States as forced labor is practiced among the Uyghur group. With some evidence that SHEIN produces clothing in Xinjiang, it is difficult to not connect them with forced labor.
The dispute at hand is between SHEIN and human rights activists, regarding the treatment of garment workers. According to SHEIN, they claim their level of transparency and that they don’t violate anyone's rights. On the human rights activist's side, they believe forced labor is being practiced under SHEIN’s rule.
SHEIN wants to be publicly traded in the U.S. due to its large number of customers in this country. A requirement by the SEC for an IPO to proceed is that all international brands must follow the U.S. foreign trade laws. This already conflicts with SHEIN because it is believed that they create garments in Xinjiang, which goes against the Uyghur Forced Prevention Act, part of Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930.
The government and other professionals within the legal field are pushing the SEC to make sure that the IPO for SHEIN does not go through, as this brand does not comply with U.S. foreign trade laws.
“We take visibility across our entire supply chain seriously, and we are committed to respecting human rights” stated a SHEIN executive. Shein has too much-supporting evidence for this statement to ever be true.
We see this dispute transform over time as SHEIN used to be quiet regarding their allegations. Now that they are trying to do more business in America, conveniently, SHEIN has started to vocalize about the issue of forced labor.
WORK CITED
Going public. SEC Emblem. (2017, May 11). https://www.sec.gov/education/capitalraising/goingpublic
Therealco. (2023, June 23). Retailers shein and Temu violate U.S. Tariff Law and evade human rights reviews on imports, House Report says. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/06/22/shein-temu-evade-us-tariff-and-human-rights-law-on-imports-house-report.html
Fonrougegab. (2023, August 30). State officials want Shein to prove it doesn’t use forced labor before it goes public. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/30/shein-faces-scrutiny-over-forced-labor-before-ipo.html
Section 307 and Imports Produced by Forced Labor. Congressional Research Service . (n.d.). https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IF/IF11360
Uyghur forced Labor Prevention Act. U.S. Customs and Border Protection. (n.d.-b). https://www.cbp.gov/trade/forced-labor/UFLPA
