ALEXANDRIA/AMSTERDAM, December 2, 2019 – A toolkit to advance reporting on modern slavery has been launched by the Responsible Labor Initiative (RLI), an Initiative of the Responsible Business Alliance, and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).

The new resource – announced on the UN International Day for the Abolition of Slavery – provides practical guidance to increase the effectiveness of corporate reporting, underpinning the transparency and accountability needed to support global efforts towards eradicating the scourge of modern slavery.

The exploitation of workers in global value chains is a pressing human rights issue that continues to occur, mainly in the private sector. Findings last year by the Global Slavery Index indicate there are 40.3 million people in slavery – including 24.9 million in forced labor.

Governments, international organizations, investors, customers and industry stakeholders expect companies to take proactive steps to ensure they contribute to the eradication of modern slavery, and communicate how they address their impacts, in accordance with globally recognized frameworks.

The toolkit helps companies in preparing their reporting in a way that meets the expectations of stakeholders. It highlights the benefits and uses of modern slavery corporate reporting, with resources to help businesses effectively disclose and communicate their actions.

“The business community is tirelessly working to address modern slavery in global supply chains,” said Rob Lederer, Executive Director, Responsible Business Alliance. “Providing transparency on these efforts is crucial, to drive continual improvement and share progress with key stakeholders.”

Tim Mohin, Chief Executive of GRI, added: “There are growing expectations on companies to identify any incidence of modern slavery in their operations and value chains and report on the steps they take as a result. This toolkit will help businesses to increase their efforts to address these serious human rights concerns, safeguard the wellbeing of workers and manage financial, legal and reputational risks.”

The Modern Slavery Reporting Toolkit includes:

• Information on key modern slavery reporting legislation requirements;
• Support on how to go beyond legal compliance, in terms of due diligence reporting and disclosing how companies evaluate their actions across the value chain;
• Examples of current reporting practice, together with others tools and guidance that businesses can access.

The toolkit is the result of an RLI-GRI initiated taskforce on reporting on modern slavery, which involved 14 organizations from a range of industries. It includes information from international frameworks, such as the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct, and regulatory requirements. There has been input from many stakeholders, including civil society organizations and socially responsible investors.