2017 Manifestos: what parties are promising on corporate accountability
In the run up to this year’s general election, the three main UK-wide political parties have now unveiled their manifestos.
There are many commonalities across three, with parties professing a desire to confront labour abuses such as modern slavery, and respond to new labour vulnerabilities driven by the “gig economy” and zero hour contracts. However, there are some notable differences on Brexit, corporate governance and the use of procurement to encourage better practice.
May 31st, 2017
| by Ayesha Carmouche
2017 manifestosBrexitModern slavery and labour rights
Conservative Party Manifesto 2017: key positions on corporate accountability
The Conservative 2017 Manifesto shares a number of similarities with pledges made under the 2015 Manifesto. These include: reducing red tape, addressing tax avoidance and evasion, and requiring companies to publish information on executive pay. In their 2017 Manifesto, the Conservatives pledge to introduce measures that ensure employees’ interests are represented on company boards, however...
Global risk analyst Verisk Maplecroft has published its annual Human Rights Outlook report, outlining ten human rights risks impacting business in 2017.
Verisk notes that modern slavery risks are set to increase as the United States toughens its immigration policy, pushing countless undocumented migrants further underground and exposing them to greater exploitation.
Landmark Danish NCP conclusion on menswear chain owner – but what now?
This week the Danish National Contact Point for the OECD guidelines on multinational enterprises cast a damning light on Scandinavian company PWT Group for its failure to adequately assess dangers linked to the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on 24 April 2013, killing 1,138 people and injuring more than 2,000 others....
November 9th, 2016
| by Corporate Justice Coalition
Open-access registry for the Modern Slavery Act critical & urgent, say key stakeholders
The Modern Slavery Act 2015 requires commercial organisations operating in the UK with an annual turnover above £36m to produce a statement setting out the steps they are taking to address and prevent the risk of modern slavery in their operations and supply chains. A number of key stakeholders that were influential in securing the...
NGOs publish new guidance for companies on reporting under the Modern Slavery Act
In autumn, following our successful campaign for the introduction of the Transparency in Supply Chains (TISC) clause into the Modern Slavery Act 2015, we participated in discussions designed to inform the content of the accompanying Home Office statutory guidance for commercial organisations required to report under the new law. While the Home Office guidance gives...
Human rights violations have increased 70% globally since 2008
Tweet by Marilyn Croser CORE The UK government must hold companies to account for abuses such as slavery, land grabs and trade in conflict minerals, says report Since 2008, there has been an unprecedented rise in human rights violations globally, up 70% according to a new report. Workers’ rights are seriously compromised and rural and...
September 9th, 2014
| by James Whiting
conflict mineralsland grabsModern slavery and labour rights
Channel 4 Dispatches: Supermarkets – only half the story
This week, Channel 4 Dispatches investigated supermarket supply chains and revealed the working lives of those at the very bottom: the people who pick, pack and manufacture our food.
Letter to Jenny Willott MP: Supply Chain Transparency (May 2014)
As part of our ongoing work around corporate transparency, we wrote to Jenny Willott MP, Minister for Employment Relations and Consumer Affairs, to request a meeting to discuss progress on supply chain transparency. BIS has put a good deal of effort and resources into reform of non-financial reporting, corporate governance and supply chain transparency. It...
