Written by Brinley Salzmann, ADS Director – Overseas & Exports
The whole subject of Human Rights is extremely broad and can be quite complex, but is of ever-increasing importance to modern companies, not only due to increasing international legislation in this area, but also the rise in companies focus on their Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) agendas. One of main areas of concern in this very wide subject is that of modern slavery.
UK approach
The UK’s own Modern Slavery Act 2015 has sought to define and criminalise slavery, servitude, forced or compulsory labour and human trafficking in the UK, also establishes the Independent Anti-slavery Commissioner. This Act has recently been reviewed by a UK House of Lords Committee, and on 16 October 2024, a formal report was published looking at whether the Act has achieved its intended goals and how it can be improved.
This report concluded that: the UK’s response to modern slavery has lagged behind other countries, including in relation to the effectiveness of the supply chain requirements in Section 54 of the Act. It found that modern slavery statements are inconsistent and that the lack of mandated content undermines the intended transparency largely due to inadequate guidance and engagement with businesses. There are several recommendations made in the report including an enhanced due diligence requirement where voluntary requirements are insufficient.
Industry action
This whole subject is of enormous importance to modern companies across all sectors and is something that all companies have an increasing need to be seen to be effectively addressing, especially through their supply chain activities. With the ever-growing emphasis on ESG issues around the world, there is a resulting need for companies to try to identify what their supply chain risks are in this area and to frame and adopt effective policies for their mitigation.
Earlier this month the ADS Business Ethics Network special interest group organised a webinar on “Challenges for businesses to comply with evolving human rights legislation”, which presented an overview of global developments in this increasingly important area, with discussions between a panel of experts from the legal, NGO, academic and Industry sectors. This event was organised under strict “Chatham House Rule”, but the interest and success in it, alongside the subject matter importance across the ESG space, means that at least one further event is being tentatively planned to take place in 2025.
If anyone has any queries in this area which they want to raise on a confidential basis, please contact brinley.salzmann@adsgroup.org.uk.
If members are interested in understanding more about what ADS is doing to support the ESG agenda, read the UK ESG Defence Charter.
