Bank of Montreal | Combating forced labour and child labour in the Loan and investment portfolios at Bank of Montreal

Status
Withdrawn
AGM date
Previous AGM date
Resolution details
Company ticker
BMO:CN
Lead filer
Mouvement d'éducation et de défense des actionnaires (MÉDAC)
Resolution ask
Report on or disclose
ESG theme
  • Social
ESG sub-theme
  • Decent work
Type of vote
Shareholder proposal
Filer type
Shareholder
Company sector
Financials
Company HQ country
Canada
Resolved clause
Be it proposed that the Bank, beginning in 2026, report to its shareholders and to interested parties (stakeholders) informing
them of the measures taken in the previous fiscal year to prevent and reduce the risk of loans being granted to companies using
forced labour and child labour in the production of goods produced, purchased or distributed by its customers whose activities are
financed by the Bank.
Supporting statement
On May 11, 2023, the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child
Labour in Supply Chains Act came into effect1. This Act requires that
certain companies report on their efforts to fight against forced
labour and child labour, with the first of these reports due by
May 31, 2024.
While the purpose of this Act is to protect children from
exploitation and human rights violations in supply chains, we
propose that the Bank takes a proactive stance on this issue by
publicly committing, as a responsible corporate entity, to prevent
and reduce the risk that its loan and investment portfolio involves
any form of support for companies that use forced labour or child
labour in their commercial activities.
According to a report by the International Labour Organization (ILO)
and UNICEF, the UN child welfare agency2, the number of children
in child labour has risen to 160 million in 2020, an increase
of 8.4 million children in the last four years. Even more concerning
is the rise in the number of children aged 5 to 17 engaged in
hazardous work, which is defined as work that is likely to harm
their development, education or health. A category that includes
hazardous sectors such as mining or fishing or working more
than 43 hours a week, which makes schooling almost impossible.
Other sectors also deserve to be mentioned such as: textiles and
clothing, electronics, forestry, etc. This report should provide all the
necessary information to enable shareholders and stakeholders to
be reassured that the Bank is committed to reducing its financial
support for these companies that force children to work.

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