Modern Slavery Act

Modern slavery is a global issue and requires global action. As an international business we are wholly committed to eliminating modern slavery practices and respecting human rights across both our own operations and our supply chain. We take appropriate action to ensure that all our employees understand our policy of eliminating forced labour, child labour and human trafficking. We expect our suppliers to meet or exceed local legislative requirements and applicable international requirements for workers’ welfare and conditions of employment, such as those set by the International Labour Organization (‘ILO’) and the Ethical Trading Initiative (‘ETI’) and aim to ensure that our suppliers apply these standards within their operations and their own supply chains.

For over ten years, Bunzl has adhered to a comprehensive suite of CR policies that cover key impacts to our business. Our policies require all businesses to develop policies which reflect the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights and local legislative requirements together with other Group standards. Our policies and Supplier code of conduct also require compliance with internationally recognised minimum requirements for workers’ welfare and conditions of employment as defined by the ILO or the ETI which specifically prohibit forced labour i.e. slavery and human trafficking.

Our policies are implemented and monitored by a team of human resource professionals and are reviewed by our internal auditors who periodically visit Bunzl locations and audit the operations to ensure that they meet the relevant standards. In addition we have a ‘Speak Up’ policy providing a dedicated confidential reporting mechanism where employees can raise issues of concern.
We have developed a Supplier code of conduct that defines the principles and standards that Bunzl expects suppliers of goods and services to adhere to, both within their operations and their supply chains. In particular, we expect our suppliers to meet or exceed local legislative requirements and applicable international requirements for workers’ welfare and conditions of employment, such as those set by the ILO and the ETI. The Supplier code of conduct is available in several languages and is actively communicated to suppliers, particularly in those countries with increased risk of modern slavery and other social risks.