Tackling Hidden Labour Exploitation - Stronger Together Exeter Event
This event at Exeter 6th May 2015 hosted by 'Stronger Together' is an interactive workshop for industry bodies to understand their responsibilities and the best practice for dealing with hidden labour exploitation in the workplace. I am looking forward to attending as a guest of the organisation to see if there is anything I can do to add value to the agenda.
The foreword of the Home Office document 'Modern Slavery and Supply Chains Consulatation' document states: "Government and business need to work together to stamp out modern slavery. The Government must generate an environment where modern slavery cannot succeed, and must work collaboratively with international partners to tackle this evil. Equally, businesses must be vigilant, to make sure that those they do business with are not exploiting others. In the Modern Slavery Bill, we have introduced a world-leading provision for transparency in supply chains that will require all businesses over a certain size to disclose what steps they have taken to ensure their business and supply chains are slavery free. I know that many businesses are already taking action. In order to create a level playing field across all eligible businesses we have chosen to put in place an ambitious, stand-alone measure that will cover major businesses from all sectors, both listed and private. This will ensure that large businesses cannot turn a blind eye to modern slavery simply because of their corporate status or domicile. We have consciously taken an approach that will encourage business to take real action whilst avoiding unnecessary burdens or an inflexible system that works only for some businesses. Nevertheless, for this measure to work effectively we must get the details right. We are, therefore, consulting to determine the size of business that this measure should apply to, and the contents of our guidance. We want to produce guidance which is both supportive and helpful, providing businesses with a clear guide as to the type of information they could include in their slavery and trafficking statements. We can only make real progress if we work together. That principle has guided our policy development, and that is why we are consulting now."
This consultation is crucial to shaping a meaningful section of the Modern Slavery Act which can be used to effectively tackle labour exploitation.