[Federal Register: April 23, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 79)]
[Notices]               
[Page 21985-21987]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr23ap08-122]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of the Secretary

 
Notice of Public Hearing To Collect Information To Assist in the 
Development of the List of Goods From Countries Produced by Child Labor 
or Forced Labor

AGENCY: Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Department of Labor.

ACTION: Notice of public hearing to collect information to assist in 
the development of a list of goods from countries produced by child 
labor or forced labor in violation of international standards; request 
for submission of testimony.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (``DOL'') will hold a public hearing 
for the purpose of gathering factual information regarding the use of 
child labor and forced labor worldwide in the production of goods at 
10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, May 28, 2008. The hearing will take place in 
the Auditorium of the Frances Perkins Building, U.S. Department of 
Labor, 200 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington DC 20210, and will be 
open to the public. This hearing is conducted pursuant to section 
105(b)(1) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 
2005 (``TVPRA of 2005''), Public Law 109-164 (2006), and as set forth 
in the Notice of Procedural Guidelines for the Development and 
Maintenance of the List of Goods From Countries Produced by Child Labor 
or Forced Labor (``Guidelines''), 72 FR 73374 (December 27, 2007). All 
members of the public attending the hearing must register by May 14 in 
order to facilitate building security. DOL is now accepting requests 
from all interested parties to provide oral and/or written testimony 
and/or exhibits at the hearing. Each presentation will be limited to 10 
minutes and must be submitted in writing to the Office of Child Labor, 
Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking by May 7. The Department is not 
able to provide financial assistance to those wishing to travel to 
attend the hearing. Those unable to attend the hearing are invited to 
submit written testimony. Please refer to the DATES, FURTHER 
INFORMATION, and ``Scope of Interest'' sections of this Notice for 
additional instructions on registration, notification, and submission 
requirements.
    The DOL Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking 
(``Office'') is currently developing a list of goods (``the List'') 
from countries that the Office has reason to believe are produced by 
child labor or forced labor

[[Page 21986]]

in violation of international standards. DOL is required to develop and 
make available to the public the List pursuant to the TVPRA of 2005. 
Information provided at the hearing will be considered by the Office in 
developing the List. Testimony should be confined to the specific topic 
of the use of child labor and forced labor in the production of goods 
internationally, as well as information on government, industry, or 
third-party actions and initiatives to address these problems. The 
Office is particularly interested in information tending to demonstrate 
the presence or absence of a significant incidence of child labor or 
forced labor in the production of a particular good.

DATES: The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, May 28, 2008. Parties 
who intend to present testimony at the hearing must notify DOL of their 
intention to appear, in writing, by 5 p.m., April 30. Presenters will 
be required to submit four written copies of their full testimony in 
English and all documentary evidence and/or exhibits to the Office by 5 
p.m., May 7. Those attending but not presenting at the hearing must 
register by May 14. The record will be kept open for additional written 
testimony until 5 p.m., June 11, 2008. Information received after that 
date may not be taken into consideration in developing the initial 
List, but will be considered by the Office as the List is maintained 
and updated in the future.
    To Give Notice of Intention To Appear, Submit Written Testimony, or 
for Further Information, Contact: Charita Castro, Office of Child 
Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking, Bureau of International 
Labor Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor at (202) 693-4843 (this is not 
a toll-free number). Written testimony and documentary evidence may be 
submitted by the following methods:
     Facsimile (fax): Permitted for submissions of 10 pages or 
fewer. ILAB/Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking 
at 202-693-4830.
     Mail, Express Delivery, Hand Delivery, and Messenger 
Service: Charita Castro/Leyla Strotkamp at U.S. Department of Labor, 
ILAB/Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking, 200 
Constitution Ave., NW., Room S-5317, Washington, DC 20210.
     E-mail: ilab-tvpra@dol.gov.
Note that security-related problems may result in significant delays in 
receiving materials by mail.
    To Register To Attend the Hearing, Contact: Leyla Strotkamp, Office 
of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking, Bureau of 
International Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor at (202) 693-4813 or 
Strotkamp.Leyla@dol.gov. Please provide Ms. Strotkamp with attendees' 
contact information, including name, organization, address, phone 
number, and e-mail address.
    Opportunity To Appear: The hearing is open to the public, and all 
interested parties are welcome to attend. However, only a party who 
files a complete notice of intention to appear will be able to present 
at the hearing. The presiding official reserves the right to limit oral 
statements in the interest of time and to otherwise keep the hearing 
focused.
    Special Accommodations: Persons who wish to request any of the 
following accommodations should contact Ms. Strotkamp by April 30: a 
presentation that exceeds 10 minutes; technical assistance for a 
presentation; submission of exhibits or other physical evidence for the 
record; or accommodation of a disability.
    For presentations that exceed 10 minutes and/or include the 
submission of evidence, ILAB will review each submission and determine 
if it warrants the additional time requested. If ILAB believes the 
requested additional time is excessive, it will allocate an appropriate 
amount of time to the presentation, and notify the participant before 
the hearing. ILAB may limit to 10 minutes the presentation of any 
participant who fails to comply substantially with these procedural 
requirements; ILAB may request any participant to return for additional 
questioning at a later time.
    Scope of Interest: DOL requests information that is current and 
directly addresses the nature and extent of child labor or forced labor 
in the production of goods, or the nature and extent of actions and 
initiatives to combat child labor and forced labor. Governments that 
have ratified International Labor Organization (``ILO'') Convention 138 
(Minimum Age), Convention 182 (Worst Forms of Child Labor), Convention 
29 (Forced Labor) and/or Convention 105 (Abolition of Forced Labor) may 
wish to submit relevant copies of their responses to any Observations 
or Direct Requests by the ILO's Committee of Experts on the Application 
of Conventions and Recommendations. Exhibits submitted may include 
studies, reports, statistics, new articles, electronic media, or other 
sources, as set forth in section ``Information Requested on Child Labor 
and Forced Labor'' of 72 FR 73374 (December 27, 2007). Submitters of 
oral or written testimony should take into consideration the ``Sources 
of Information and Factors Considered in the Development and 
Maintenance of the List'' (Section A of the Procedural Guidelines), as 
well as the definitions of child labor and forced labor contained in 
Section C of the Guidelines. Refer to 72 FR 73374 (December 27, 2007).
    Where applicable, testimony providing factual information should 
indicate its source or sources, and copies of the source material 
should be provided. If primary sources are utilized, such as research 
studies, interviews, direct observations, or other sources of 
quantitative or qualitative data, details on the research or data-
gathering methodology should be provided.
    Written testimony, and written copies of oral testimony, should be 
submitted to the addresses and by the deadlines set forth above. 
Submissions made via fax, mail, express delivery, hand delivery, or 
messenger service should clearly identify the person filing the 
submission and should be signed and dated. Submissions made via mail, 
express delivery, hand delivery, or messenger service should include an 
original plus three copies of all materials and attachments. If 
possible, submitters should also provide copies of such materials and 
attachments on a CD-ROM or similar electronic media. Note that 
security-related screening may result in significant delays in 
receiving comments and other written materials submitted by regular 
mail.
    Government classified information will not be accepted. The Office 
may request that classified information brought to its attention be 
declassified. Submissions containing confidential or personal 
information may be redacted by the Office before being made available 
to the public, in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. The 
Official Record of this Public Hearing, including statements submitted 
for the record, will be published and made available to the public on 
the DOL Web site.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 105(b)(1) of the TVPRA of 2005, 
Public Law 109-164 (2006), directed the Secretary of Labor, acting 
through the Bureau of International Labor Affairs, to ``carry out 
additional activities to monitor and combat forced labor and child 
labor in foreign countries.'' Section 105(b)(2) of the TVPRA, 22 U.S.C. 
7112(b)(2), listed these activities as:
    (A) Monitor the use of forced labor and child labor in violation of 
international standards;
    (B) Provide information regarding trafficking in persons for the 
purpose of forced labor to the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking 
of the Department of

[[Page 21987]]

State for inclusion in [the] trafficking in persons report required by 
section 110(b) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 
U.S.C. 7107(b));
    (C) Develop and make available to the public a list of goods from 
countries that the Bureau of International Labor Affairs has reason to 
believe are produced by forced labor or child labor in violation of 
international standards;
    (D) Work with persons who are involved in the production of goods 
on the list described in subparagraph (C) to create a standard set of 
practices that will reduce the likelihood that such persons will 
produce goods using the labor described in such subparagraph; and
    (E) Consult with other departments and agencies of the United 
States Government to reduce forced labor and child labor 
internationally and ensure that products made by forced labor and child 
labor in violation of international standards are not imported into the 
United States.
    The Office carries out the DOL mandates in the TVPRA. The 
Guidelines provide the framework for ILAB's implementation of the TVPRA 
mandate, and establish procedures for the submission and review of 
information and the process for developing and maintaining the List. In 
addition to the Office's efforts under the TVPRA, the Office conducts 
and publishes research on child labor and forced labor worldwide. The 
Office consults such sources as DOL's Findings on the Worst Forms of 
Child Labor; the Department of State's annual Country Reports on Human 
Rights Practices and Trafficking in Persons Report; reports by 
governmental, non-governmental, and international organizations; and 
reports by academic and research institutions and other sources.
    The Office will evaluate all information received according to the 
processes outlined in the published Guidelines, 72 FR 73374 (December 
27, 2007). Goods that meet the criteria outlined in the Guidelines will 
be placed on an initial List, and published in the Federal Register and 
on the DOL Web site. DOL intends to maintain and update the List over 
time, through its own research, interagency consultations, and 
additional public submissions of information.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 17th day of April, 2008.
Charlotte M. Ponticelli,
Deputy Under Secretary for International Affairs.
 [FR Doc. E8-8709 Filed 4-22-08; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510-28-P