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NEW SOUTH WALES MODERN SLAVERY LEGISLATION
WHAT SHOULD BUSINESSES BE DOING IN 2019?
Similar legislation was passed by the New South Wales State Government in June 2018 which requires organisations with employees in NSW that supply goods and serviceswithanannual turnover of at least AUD 50 million to prepare a statement. The NSW legislation also establishes an Anti-Slavery Commissioner. The NSW legislation also establishes an Anti-Slavery Commissioner and imposes financial penalties (up to AUD 1.1 million) for non-compliance. The NSW legislation has not yet entered into force and concerns have been raised about the scope of the legislation, and its interaction with the Commonwealth legislation from a constitutional perspective. The legislation has been referred to the Legislative Council Standing Committee on Social Issues for inquiry and report. It is uncertainwhether theNSWlegislation will proceed. If it does proceed, those companies who have issued an annual statement under the Commonwealth legislation will not be required issue a further statement.
From 2019, compliance teams will need to devote resources to developing policies and procedures to facilitate: –– the identification and reporting of modern slavery risks and practices; –– the development of measures to address and remediate those risks; –– the assessment of the effectiveness of those practices; and –– the preparation of Modern Slavery Statements. The public access to statements may expose businesses to reputational and financial pressures from shareholders, non-government organisations, and customers where modern slavery risks are identified. The critical first step is to undertake a risk mapping exercise to determine the potential exposure to the risk of modern slavery that your business faces, taking into account the nature of its supply chain. There are a range of due diligence measures that can be taken to address such risks including contractual obligations, audits processes, introduction of improved policies and procedures and training.
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