The Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) has launched an investigation into athletic apparel brand Nike over allegations of use of Uyghur forced labour in the People’s Republic of China.
An initial assessment report released by CORE alleged that NIKE Canada has, or had, used or benefitted from the use of Uyghur forced labour in its supply chains or operations in the country.
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In response to the probe, the sporting brand assures that it no longer has ties with the companies accused of engaging in the allegation.
The BBC reported that Nike sent a letter to the Ombudsperson stating: “Nike does not source products from the XUAR and we have confirmed with our contract suppliers that they are not using textiles or spun yarn from the region.”
The probes were launched after a coalition of 28 civil society organisations filed several complaints in June 2022 about the overseas business of 13 Canadian companies.
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In addition to Nike, CORE launched a similar probe on mining firm Dynasty Gold.
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By GlobalDataThe company allegedly benefited from the use of Uyghur forced labour at a mine in China in which Dynasty Gold holds a majority interest.
Ombudsperson Sheri Meyerhoffer said: “I have decided to launch investigations into these complaints in order to get the facts and recommend the appropriate actions.
“I have not pre-judged the outcome of the investigations. We will await the results and we will publish final reports with my recommendations.
“It is our mission to resolve human rights complaints in a fair and unbiased manner in order to help those impacted and to strengthen the responsible business practices of the companies involved.”
The CORE will publish the Initial Assessment reports in relation to the complaints against the remaining 11 companies in the next few weeks.
Last month, the US Supreme Court denied hearing Nike’s appeal in a long pending shoe design infringement dispute with German rival adidas.
