The Palm Rights Observatory, which highlights the existence of forced labor, joins the public complaints made by more than 30 social and international organizations, including CONDEG and OXFAM, against human rights violations perpetrated by a palm oil production and marketing company within the Indigenous Maya Q’eqchi’ communities located in its operational area. An urgent social dialogue is needed that includes the voices of workers and communities.
Public Statement – Request for an Import Ban on a Company in Guatemala
El pasado 17 de abril de 2024, el Consejo Nacional de Desplazados de Guatemala -CONDEG- se ha pronunciado con el fin de hacer visibles las violaciones de derechos, así como las condiciones de trabajo forzado que continúan presentándose dentro de las plantaciones y de las cuales la población indígena es la principal afectada.
It is essential to underscore that forced labor constitutes a severe labor rights violation. According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), Forced Labor is understood as any situation in which people are compelled to work against their will through violence or intimidation, or by more subtle means such as manipulated debt, retention of identity documents, or threats of reporting to immigration authorities.
We therefore support these complaints, backed by the findings of our own Palm Rights Observatory, through which in 2024, we have documented that, out of 64 workers who participated in digital monitoring, 98% belong to ethnically distinct groups and report labor rights violations in situations such as abusive working conditions, non-recognition of payment for overtime hours, and poor health and safety conditions at work.
Notably, 67% of these workers earn less than the legal minimum wage in Guatemala, 88% report being forced to exceed the legal maximum working hours. Additionally, 78% state that they work under threats of unjust dismissals, sanctions, wage withholding, or complete job loss. Furthermore, the Palm Rights Observatory has reported signs of child labor, a situation also officially supported by CONDEG
For this reason, we join the petition directed at the United States, specifically the Customs and Border Protection Office, to consider a possible import ban on palm oil products and their derivatives, in order to urgently halt forced labor practices in plantations in Guatemala. This import ban request could be a path toward improving the working conditions of these laborers.
These concerns compel us to remind all actors in the palm oil supply chain of the need and obligation for large companies to respond to due diligence in order to ensure fair and ethical labor practices throughout the supply chain.
We trust that the current RSPO certification processes underway in Guatemala will consider the present context in terms of human rights and labor conditions, and will enforce the sustainability principles that demand respect for workers.
EN 
ES