Modern Slavery Requirements and Statement Development

Understanding Your Responsibilities

Modern slavery refers to situations where individuals are exploited through coercion, threats or deception, and are unable to leave those conditions. It includes practices such as forced labour, debt bondage, human trafficking and child labour.

Under the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth), Australian entities with a turnover >$100m are required to assess and report on the risks of modern slavery in their operations and supply chains. For many organisations, this has highlighted the need to improve visibility across suppliers and implement structured approaches to ethical sourcing and risk management.

What Organisations Need to Do

Organisations subject to the Act must submit an annual Modern Slavery Statement to the Australian Government. These statements must outline:

• The structure and operations of the organisation;
• The risks of modern slavery in the organisation’s operations and supply chains;
• Actions taken to assess and address those risks, including due diligence and remediation;
• How the effectiveness of those actions is assessed;
• Processes of consultation across entities (if applicable); and
• Any other relevant information.

Even where reporting is not mandatory, many smaller organisations are choosing to assess their modern slavery risks in response to client requirements, stakeholder expectations, or to meet procurement conditions.

How We Can Support

We assist organisations in understanding and meeting their modern slavery responsibilities by providing:

• Guidance on identifying and assessing risk areas;
• Development of appropriate policies and procedures;
• Support in preparing compliant and meaningful Modern Slavery Statements;
• Advice on supplier engagement and risk mitigation approaches; and
• Internal education and awareness resources for staff and contractors.

Our aim is to ensure organisations not only meet their legal obligations but also contribute to improved labour standards and transparency across their supply chains.

Get In Touch

If your organisation needs support to understand its obligations or to develop a compliant Modern Slavery Statement, contact us to discuss how we can assist.