Five Key Messages We’re Taking Away from our Sydney Panel Event

Jenny Kruschel, TCF National Secretary CFMEU Manufacturing Division

Eradicating the exploitation of local workers is a collective issue and unions play a critical role in giving workers a voice. It was also highlighted by Carolyn Kitto that “the research shows there’s a very clear correlation of the more unionised a country and a workforce is, the less modern slavery there is, and vice versa.” This demonstrates the powerful impact unions have on supply chain transparency.   

As expressed by Jenny Kruschel, “workers need a safe way and safe space to communicate their concerns” especially those of migrant backgrounds who require bilingual and proficient support. By deploying skilled organisers that know how to work with migrant workers, unions are able to advocate for their rights and solve issues while also protecting their privacy and workplace rights.  

Top: Aldona Brangwin (Citizen Wolf), Nina Gbor, Eric Phu (Citizen Wolf), Rachel Reilly

Above: Associate Professor Martijn Boersma (The University of Sydney)

Since Australia’s Commonwealth Modern Slavery Act was introduced in 2018, larger organisations are now required to report annually through their Modern Slavery Statement. This statement shares what they’re doing to identify and combat modern slavery risks.

However, we’re now seeing a move towards human rights due diligence, where companies must go beyond just reporting on risk and move towards respecting human rights.  To address exploitation, it’s vital that businesses are not only aware of the risks in supply chains, but must take systematic and proactive action to address these risks. 

Carolyn Kitto OAM (Co-Director, Be Slavery Free)

While ending modern slavery isn’t an individual problem to solve, Carolyn Kitto OAM (Co-Director, Be Slavery Free) commented that consumer sentiment plays a crucial role in raising awareness around slavery and workplace exploitation, as it helps drive demand for ethical practices. Be Slavery Free conducted a survey last year on consumer attitudes to modern slavery and “around 70 per cent of Australians believed that they had probably purchased a good that was made with forced labour or modern slavery.”   

Although this is a progressive leap in consumer awareness, Carolyn expressed that it’s still difficult for the consumer to actually know if an imported product is ‘slavery free’ despite its claims. To address this issue, she highlighted the government’s duty to reject imports that use modern slavery or forced labour, which in turn, supports consumers to make more ethical, local choices.  

Andrew Quinn (General Manager, ABMT Apparel)

Government procurement has a massive economic footprint of about 42 billion dollars per year. According to Andrew Quinn (General Manager, ABMT Apparel), government procurement is the “only part of the whole industry that can give us some certainty around manufacturing.” It’s this certainty that gives businesses the opportunity to “invest in machinery, staff training, our facilities, knowing that work is coming.”   

To support the local TCF industry, the panel agreed that government procurement should preference local businesses that are prepared to go through the ethical accreditation process. This would demonstrate the government’s commitment to eradicate the exploitation of workers within Australia and also provide benefits to those doing the right thing.   

However, a key challenge is solving how local and smaller suppliers can fulfil larger requirements when they don’t have the capacity. A notable suggestion was to break down projects into more achievable parts, which would allow for local organisations to receive contracts while also providing them with an opportunity to sustainably scale for future work.    

By considering ethically accredited businesses of all sizes for government procurement opportunities, we can create a more vibrant and diverse industry that ensures everyone gets a fair go.  

The Hon. Dr. Sarah Kaine MLC

The Hon. Dr. Sarah Kaine MLC spoke briefly about the New South Wales Ethical Clothing Extended Responsibility Scheme which was a regulation established in 2005. This regulatory framework was innovative for its time and strived to bring transparency across the clothing and textile supply chain in New South Wales. This was a piece of co-regulation with the TCF union which meant that “organisations at the top of the supply chain were required to report on all of the activities down their supply chain when they purchased textiles and other clothing.”  

This scheme was the subject of a recent NSW Parliament Modern Slavery Committee Inquiry. The Committee found there is still a lot of value in the Scheme due to its level of granularity and transparency, ensuring the lawful treatment and protection of workers and recommended that the Scheme be re–operationalised.