Chair,

I have the honor to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

Mr. Special Rapporteur,

We reiterate our strong support for your mandate and thank you for your timely report which looks at the role of workers’ organizations, including trade unions, in preventing workers from being subjected to contemporary forms of slavery.

Your report demonstrates again that all workers should have the right to speak with a collective voice without discrimination, and have the right to form and join workers’ organizations and engage in collective bargaining under ILO standards.

It is therefore of utmost concern that certain categories of workers, such as female workers, face significant barriers in exercising trade union rights due to intersectional forms of discrimination and marginalization.

Mr. Special Rapporteur,

1/ You highlight a multitude of encouraging practices on the part of workers’ organizations all over the world. Could you elaborate on examples that effectively address intersectional forms of discrimination and marginalization in a structural way and that would deserve replication?

2/ In your report you also address the importance of corporate human rights due diligence. You mention the EU Directive on corporate sustainability due diligence that was adopted earlier this year. When it comes to implementation of this directive, what should EU Member States focus on to effectively counter contemporary forms of slavery worldwide.