KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 3): Sime Darby Plantation Bhd said it is optimistic that it will soon be allowed to resume exports to the United States following the US customs statement that its products are no longer being produced through forced labour.
On Thursday (Feb 2), the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said it had determined that palm oil and manufactured products linked to Sime Darby Plantation are “no longer being produced with the use of forced labour”.
The CBP issued the initial finding of forced labour on Jan 28, 2022, having initiated a withhold release order (WRO) on the products — which allowed them to be detained by US customs — since Dec 16, 2020.
“We are optimistic that the tremendous strides we have made in bolstering the quality of life for our workforce will soon be recognised by the CBP, and that we will be allowed to resume exports to the US,” the group said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia.
In a separate statement later, Sime Darby Plantation said the US CBP has recognised the comprehensive process undertaken by the group in the last two years to review, revise and — where necessary — upgrade its protocols for recruiting, managing and working with its workers.
Sime Darby Plantation group managing director Mohamad Helmy Othman Basha said the exercise has been hugely valuable in establishing a market-leading approach to ensure the group's employees feel safe, satisfied, supported and fairly treated.
“It took us more than 500,000 man hours to undertake our reviews and to revise what we already had in place. To ensure change is embraced and entrenched, we also put in place key enablers to empower our workers. It is essential that such safeguards are in place to protect those who are vulnerable,” said Mohamad Helmy.
The group introduced a few strategies as part of its renewed commitments, which includes the reimbursement of recruitment fees that may have been paid by current and eligible former workers to secure employment with Sime Darby Plantation.
The plantation group is also committed to conduct regular due diligence on contractors to ensure they strictly adhere to its Contractor Vendor Management Policies and Guidelines when managing workers.
Among the steps it has taken is the creation of social dialogue platforms for workers' elected representatives from every nationality to meet with estate management fortnightly, and the setting up of three dedicated helplines — two independently administered — for workers and contractors to raise grievances. It has also introduced controls for the monitoring of working hours to ensure maximum working hours are not breached.
The plantation group has also developed a dedicated mobile application for workers to request repairs to their on-site accommodation. “Over 37,000 requests have been received through this platform since its inception in October 2021, and 97% of them have been resolved within agreed time frames,” it added.
Mohammad Helmy added that the plantation group will continue to work with nongovernmental organisations and like-minded parties to advocate for change at an industry level.
Sime Darby Plantation was among eight companies in the plantation and glove manufacturing sectors that were slapped with a WRO on their products by the CBP in relation to forced labour allegations.
FGV Holdings Bhd, the other affected plantation group, said in January that it expects the CBP's ban on its products to be lifted by year end, with a petition to be submitted by end-March. The WRO was issued in September 2020.
Sime Darby Plantation's share price closed 2 sen or 1.45% lower at RM4.43 on Friday, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM30.29 billion.