Skip to Content

Modern Slavery Law.


Passed in 2015 by the Government the Modern Slavery Act is designed to prevent and prosecute any act of slavery, included within the act is a provision regarding the transparency of supply chains.

Forced Labour around the world is a big problem, with an estimated 20 million people being exploited in some way, including child labour and trafficking. In the UK it is estimated that over 10,000 people are working as slaves and world wide it is the second largest criminal industry with a estimate 150 billion dollars plus, in revenue.

Modern Slavery Law.

Transparency in supply chains.

The objective is to highlight any slavery in your suppliers and makes companies accountable for any abuse, the objective being that British companies do not have any link to this type of criminal activity and to be able to prove to shareholders, staff and consumers that each company is taking a proactive step to ensure that is the case.

What are the steps a business must take?

If you have a turnover of £36 million and trade in the UK you are required to produce and display on your website a 'slavery and trafficking statement' the statement must set the steps the Business has taken to ensure that slavery does not happen in any part or its business or in any part of its supply chain, failure to do so may result in court action and an unlimited fine.
It is also expected that the statement is revisited to ensure that the monitoring is ongoing.
The Act applies to any foreign company or subsidiaries that conduct business in the UK, if you are a UK based company operating overseas the Act is unclear, but if in any doubt you should comply, if you do object with producing a statement you should seek legal advice.

What needs to be included in the statement?

On this point the Government has not been at its most helpful, the statement layout and content is up to the individual business, you can provide as much detail as you like, but you must show the steps you have taken in obtaining the evidence to show that the supply chain is slavery free.

Implementation.

The modern slavery act does highlight the problem and does give business a responsibly to be answerable, in practice a business can produce and display a statement to say that it does not take any step to check its supply chain and in so doing will fulfil its obligation.

An important point is that a business is not responsible for the supply chain; if it turns out they do undertake any form of slavery.

The point of the Act must be to increase awareness to modern slavery, and a moral responsibility for companies to do their best to fight exploitation.

Image Description
related news
recent articles
What is a Section 60 notice?

Over 2000 section 60 notices have been issued in London last year..

link

Restrictive Covenants

Restrictive covenants - If you happen across a restrictive covenant in a contract, what is it and why is it in place?..

What is a Section 60 notice?

Over 2000 section 60 notices have been issued in London last year, what are they and do they work?..

Appointing a Solicitor

Guide to some of the factors people use when appointing a Solicitor...

Stop and Search Laws to be changed?

Police Chiefs are calling for a change in the 'stop and search' l..

link

Reporting a Crime.

If the crime is ongoing call 999, you should not put yours or anyone else’s safety at risk by taking action yourself...

Neighbour Disputes | Nuisance Neighbours

Unfortunately, not everyone is respectful in life, most of the time we just move on and keep our opinion to ourselves, but when that comes to where we live you ..

Employment Contracts

Everyone who is working as an employee should have an employment contract and as with all contracts this sets out the terms of the employment, and will include ..

Reporting a Crime.

If the crime is ongoing call 999, you should not put yours or any..

link

Diverted Profits Tax

Diverted Profits Tax - With effect from this April, foreign companies selling to customers in the UK will be liable for UK tax on profits...

Landlord Solicitors - solicitors.com

Landlord Solicitors. Landlord solicitors will be able to advise Landlords and Letting Agents of residential property on all issues arising out of residential te..

Energy Performance Certificates

Energy Performance Certificates. Domestic and Commercial properties that are available to buy or rent must have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). What a..

Image Description
Is there anything wrong with this page? - any amendments will receive accreditation - email us

Solicitors.com are not a firm of solicitors, and any content on the site should not be used in substitute for obtaining Legal advice from a solicitor regulated in the UK, Solicitors.com recommends that you contact a firm of solicitors to discuss your individual legal requirement. Whilst we strive to bring you accurate up to date content, all content on this site is not legal advice and is not guaranteed to be correct. Use of this site does not create a client relationship.

Information by area of law
Back to top