PETALING JAYA: Supermax Corporation has become the latest Malaysian glove maker hit by a US import ban.
The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) yesterday issued a withhold release order (WRO) to prohibit imports from Supermax’s wholly-owned subsidiaries Maxter Glove Manufacturing Sdn Bhd, Maxwell Glove Manufacturing Bhd and Supermax Glove Manufacturing from entering the country based on reasonable information of forced labour in Supermax’s manufacturing operations.
In a statement, CBP said that with 10 of the 11 forced labour indicators identified during the course of its investigation, it had “ample evidence” to conclude that Supermax and its subsidiaries produce gloves in violation of US trade law.
“With this WRO, the Biden-Harris administration continues to make clear that products made in whole or in part by forced labour will not be allowed into the US,” Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N Mayorkas said in a CBP statement.
“The Department of Homeland Security will continue to set an international standard for the elimination of the deplorable practice of forced labour. We will remove it from American supply chains.”
Top Glove, the world’s leading glove manufacturer, faced a similar ban by the CBP over forced labour allegations in July 2020.
The ban was lifted last month after the company said it had resolved all indicators of forced labour in its operations, citing a report by independent consultant Impactt Ltd.
Another leading Malaysian glove manufacturer, WRP Asia Pacific, was also put on the CBP withhold release order in September 2019 after charges that its gloves were produced through forced labour.
The ban was lifted in March 2020 based on information obtained by CBP showing that the company was no longer producing its rubber gloves under forced labour conditions.
Over the last year, palm oil producers Sime Darby Plantation and FGV Holdings have also been placed on the withhold release order list over forced labour allegations.