2 June 2022

Tech & Industry company representatives sound the alarm on unwanted consequences of the due diligence Directive

On 31 May 2022, two organisations representing Technology & Industry in Europe, Ceemet – the employers’ organisation – and Orgalim – the industry organisation – address a letter to the EU policy makers to express their strong concerns regarding the Directive on corporate sustainability due diligence.

Ceemet and Orgalim consider that the proposed Directive introduces requirements for companies that will significantly weaken the resilience of their supply chains, while the industries represented by both organisations rely on efficient global supply chains and a stable market environment.

With the current geopolitical context exacerbating the ongoing effects of the pandemic, companies face unforeseen economic challenges. These range from increasing energy costs and high inflation to supply chain disruptions. As part of addressing these economic challenges, the supply chains need to be strengthened and diversified. Unfortunately, the legislative proposal will do the exact opposite and put companies at an enormous competitive disadvantage compared to EU third country companies.

To mitigate these unwanted consequences, the undersigned organisations propose a number of changes to the proposed Directive which will make it more workable in practice, while still maintaining its aim. The concrete suggestions can be found in the letter.