WASHINGTON—U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a Withhold Release Order against shipments of disposable rubber gloves from Malaysia that allegedly were manufactured wholly or in part using forced labor.
The WRO against glove shipments from WRP Asian Pacific Sdn. Bhd. was one of five CBP issued Sept. 30, according to an agency press release.
The Forced Labor Division within CBP's Office of Trade has responsibility for tracking and prohibiting the shipment of goods made with forced labor, including convict labor, indentured labor and child labor.
Importers of goods under a WRO have the option of re-exporting the products or submitting documentation to CBP demonstrating that the goods were not made with forced labor.
"CBP is firmly committed to identifying and preventing products made with the use of forced labor from entering the stream of U.S. commerce," said Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner for the CBP Office of Trade.
The other WROs issued Sept. 30 were against clothing made in China, bone black manufactured in Brazil, diamonds mined in Zimbabwe and gold mined in Congo, CBP said.