US and EU Unilateral Trade Measures on Forced Labor in Global Supply Chains: Contexts, Mechanisms, and Challenges

Both measures follow a vertical, State-to-Company design, whereby the trade-restrictive measure directly apply to a single economic operator. In the field of trade measures at the intersection between trade and forced labour, these measures represent an important evolution: until now, both actors have primarily relied on horizontal State-to-State commitments, either within their Free Trade Agreement (FTAs) or Generalized System of Preferences (GSPs). In light of their groundbreaking nature, the paper first provides a comparative analysis of the US UFLPA and the EU FLR in terms of their aim, scope, design and relationship with due diligence regulations. This analysis has a two-fold purpose. On the one hand, it is useful to offer a first compatibility assessment of both measures under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994), specifically with regard to Articles I, III:4 and XI GATT, and their potential justification under Article XX GATT. On the other hand, it allows for critically reflecting on how the trade and labour nexus is evolving through unilateral measures and the key challenges ahead. The paper argues that there is an on-going process to ‘unpack’ the general trade and labour nexus as traditionally conceived in FTAs and GSPs, by the introduction of innovative trade (restrictive) measures addressing specific labour issues individually and, in parallel, an ongoing ‘verticalization’ of the same nexus, whereby the focus is shifting from trade partners countries to private actors in global supply chains, by increasingly linking trade measures with due diligence obligations.

About the speaker

Ilaria Colombo is a PhD Candidate in International and EU Law at Bocconi University. From September 2024 to February 2025, she has been visiting research fellow at the World Trade Institute in Bern. She holds a Laurea in Giurisprudenza cum laude from the Catholic University of Milan. Her primary research area is international trade law, with a focus on the so-called ‘trade and labour’ nexus. She conducts research on trade and trade-related measures aimed at promoting social sustainability and international labour rights, as well as addressing the negative externalities of trade on labour-related issues. Her PhD project explores the interplay between unilateral and bilateral trade measures addressing forced labour. Ilaria also serves as Programme Coordinator of the Natural Resources Programme at the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law (CISDL).

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