New Federal Tools Offer a Stronger Starting Point for Labor Risk Due Diligence

Supply chain due diligence has never been a simple checkbox exercise, and the regulatory environment over the past few years has made that clearer than ever. For U.S. importers, understanding labor risk across global supplier networks — especially beyond the first tier — remains one of the more difficult operational challenges to get right.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs recently made that work a little easier, launching four free self-assessment tools designed to help businesses map risk, evaluate supplier practices, and build more resilient due diligence programs.

The tools are worth understanding individually:

LaborShield is a mobile app providing country-level data on labor violations across more than 145 countries — useful for sourcing teams that need quick, reliable reference points when evaluating new markets or suppliers.

ImportWatch brings together ILAB’s labor abuse research and U.S. Census Bureau import data into a consolidated view of high-risk goods. For compliance teams, it’s a strong early-warning resource that doesn’t require building the analysis from scratch.

SourcingStrong provides a structured framework for developing or strengthening a labor due diligence program. Whether a company is formalizing an existing process or starting to build one, it offers a practical foundation.

The Supply Chain Traceability Portal addresses one of the field’s most persistent gaps — visibility past Tier 1. The portal helps organizations map deeper into their supply chains, identifying where exploitation risk is most likely to exist in layers that traditional audits rarely reach.

Taken together, these tools won’t replace a mature compliance program, but they meaningfully lower the barrier to entry for teams looking to strengthen their approach. As enforcement under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act continues to evolve and sub-tier visibility becomes an increasing expectation, having better information earlier in the process is a genuine advantage.

For teams looking to strengthen their due diligence approach, these tools are a solid place to start — and the conversation doesn’t have to stop there. If you’re unsure how new regulatory developments fit into your current compliance strategy, reach out to your Future Forwarding representative. We’re here to help you stay ahead of what’s coming.