The Solar Stewardship Initiative (SSI) submitted a response to the Attorney-General of Australia’s public consultation on strengthening Australia’s response to modern slavery in supply chains.
Following the Government’s announcement in July of its intention to further strengthen Australia’s Modern Slavery Act, including by introducing a new criminal offence for the failure to prevent modern slavery in supply chains, the consultation sought feedback to help ensure any reforms are practical and effective, supporting meaningful action to identify, prevent and address modern slavery risks.
The proposed reforms aim to enhance corporate accountability for ‘failure to prevent’ modern slavery in global supply chains, improve protections for workers vulnerable to exploitation, and create a level playing field for businesses that are already taking meaningful action to identify, manage and address modern slavery risks.
In its submission, the SSI welcomed the proposed reforms as important changes to effectively address exploitation in supply chains for products that end up in Australia, as well as strengthening responsible business conduct and better aligning Australian policy with approaches taken by key global partners such as the European Union.
The SSI highlighted the valuable role that multi-stakeholder initiatives, independent third-party audits, and certification systems can play in supporting companies to meet their obligations under modern slavery legislation, and to support their due diligence efforts by providing credible, standardised, and independently verified information.
Drawing on its experience in the solar sector, the SSI also recommended clear fitness criteria to evaluate the robustness of assurance systems, stakeholder engagement processes, traceability mechanisms, and independent assessments. The response reinforces the SSI’s commitment to supporting robust human rights legislation and efficient due diligence practices, as well as contributing constructively to the development of effective and workable requirements and expectations for companies.
The SSI response to the consultation on Modern Slavery Act reforms can be read here.