The Investor Forum works to put stewardship at the heart of the decision making process. Shareholders increasingly need to incorporate the impact of all value drivers when considering their long-term investment thesis – including non-financial factors such as culture, human capital, environmental impact and citizenship. For investors, insights in these areas are becoming a differentiating factor.

Phase 1 – Apparel Sector

In 2017, we focused on the working environments of the distribution centres and the potential for abuse within the textile supply chain in the apparel sector:
Working Practices in the Apparel Sector.

Phase 2 – Food Retail Sector

In 2018, we extended those insights and lessons into our analysis of the food retail sector. These are large consumer facing businesses, and significant employers, directly and indirectly, which have the power to influence complex global supply chains. The risks the sector faces differ – but labour exploitation and creating a productive working environment are systemic challenges.

Phase 3 – Construction Sector

This phase was focused on the systemic issues that contribute to the high risk of labour exploitation within the construction sector, and how investors can encourage companies to take steps to address the issue. The Forum met companies across the supply chain for detailed investigation in 2020.

The Investor Forum is pleased to publish a toolkit to assist investors in their due diligence to understand the efforts taken by their investee companies to address Modern Slavery.  We would like to thank Themis for their support in this project, and encourage all financial service professionals to complete the training at Themis Anti-Slavery Hub. https://themisservices.co.uk/msht-training

Thanks also to our Working Group of Members who gave their input.  This year, we will work with investors to apply the toolkit on a sector-specific basis as part of a Stewardship 360 project, and will continue to engage with companies as necessary on this issue.