The United States announced new tariffs of 10% and 12.5% on 60 trading partners, effective 12:01 a.m. Friday, after a temporary 10% duty expired.

The tariffs were presented as a response to countries that do not adequately address forced labor in their supply chains, though the United States itself reports substantial forced labor within its borders.

According to the Global Slavery Index, about $170 billion of imported goods are considered at risk of containing forced labor, the highest among G20 nations in 2023. The identified products include electronics from China and Malaysia, clothing from India, Vietnam and Bangladesh, fish from Ghana, and timber from Russia, Brazil and Peru. In addition, minerals such as cobalt, copper, lithium and nickel, used in electronics, are linked to alleged human rights abuses. The United States is the only G20 country that has not enforced penalties for non‑compliance with forced‑labor reporting and procurement requirements.

Domestically, the Global Slavery Index estimated 1.1 million people were living in modern slavery in the United States in 2021, or 3.3 forced workers per 1,000 people, a rate higher than that of the Netherlands (0.6), Germany (0.6), Britain (1.8) and Canada (1.8).

The United States permits forced labor in prisons under the exception in the 13th Amendment, allowing work as punishment for crimes. In 2022, the ACLU and the University of Chicago reported that roughly 800,000 of the 1.2 million state and federal prisoners were working, often without pay, and that incarcerated workers produced over $2 billion worth of goods and provided $9 billion in services to prisons and government entities. In several southern states, prisoners were assigned to agricultural work on penal farms, and some were leased to private businesses, working in industries such as poultry processing and fast‑food kitchens for minimal wages.

Other nations have legislation banning imports made with forced labor, but the United States has not enforced such measures. The European Union plans to prohibit imports involving forced labor beginning in 2027.

Critics noted that the United States has a higher per‑capita rate of forced labor than many of the countries targeted by the new tariffs.

The tariffs therefore raise questions about the consistency of U.S. policy on forced labor and its potential effects on international trade.