Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Australia)

Manage compliance and enforcement under Modern Slavery Act 2018 + responses to 2023 statutory review. Section 22 Minister powers - request explanation of non-compliance + publish information identifying non-compliant entities + Minister direction to comply. CRITICAL GAP - NO civil or criminal penalties under current Act (significant criticism + civil society advocacy for reform). Reputational risk only as primary enforcement mechanism. Naming and shaming via published non-compliance + media + civil society + ESG investor pressure (Modern Slavery Investor Coalition + KnowTheChain Investors + Workforce Disclosure Initiative). McMillan Statutory Review March 2023 + Report August 2023 + 30 recommendations including: introduce civil penalties for non-compliance (up to AUD 600,000 for entities) + lower revenue threshold to AUD 50 million + establish independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (DONE

• Section 22 Minister explanation response (where applicable)
• Reputational risk monitoring (Modern Slavery Investor Coalition + KnowTheChain + Workforce Disclosure Initiative)
• McMillan Review 30 recommendation readiness (civil penalties up to AUD 600K + AUD 50M threshold + mandatory due diligence + worst-forms child labour duty + KPIs)
• Anti-Slavery Commissioner Office liaison records (Chris Evans inaugural Commissioner December 2024)
• AFP Modern Slavery and Vulnerable Persons Team coordination protocol
• NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner state coordination evidence
• International coordination Bali Process + ILO + UN GIFT participation

• No reputational risk monitoring (under-prepared for civil society naming)
• McMillan Review reform readiness gap (especially mandatory due diligence)
• Anti-Slavery Commissioner Office not engaged for guidance
• AFP coordination protocol absent for serious incidents

Address Mandatory Criteria 1 and 2 of Modern Slavery Statement under Section 16(1)(a) and (b). Criterion 1 - Identify the reporting entity: legal name + ACN/ARBN + ABN + registered office address + nature of business + financial year + reporting period. Criterion 2 - Describe the structure operations and supply chains of the reporting entity: corporate structure including parent + subsidiaries + joint ventures + branches + operations across geographies including manufacturing + retail + services + procurement + logistics + supply chains including Tier 1 direct suppliers + Tier 2/3+ indirect suppliers + total supplier count + supplier categories + supplier geographic distribution + supplier industry sectors + supplier longevity. Mapping should align with International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC) + ANZSIC Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification + Harmoni

• Criterion 1 entity identification (legal name + ACN/ARBN + ABN + registered office + business nature)
• Criterion 2 structure (parent + subsidiaries + JVs + branches + operations)
• Supply chain mapping including Tier 1 + Tier 2/3+ + supplier count + geographic distribution + industry sectors
• Worker types disclosure (direct + indirect + contractors + casual + migrant + visa workers)
• ISIC + ANZSIC industry classification + HS codes alignment

• Tier 2/3+ supplier visibility limited to direct suppliers
• Worker types disclosure incomplete (missing labour-hire + agency)
• Supplier geographic distribution at country level only (missing region)
• Structure description omits joint ventures or branches

Address Mandatory Criteria 6 and 7 of Modern Slavery Statement under Section 16(1)(f) and (g) + governance arrangements. Criterion 6 - Describe process of consultation with entities owned/controlled by reporting entity + (where joint statement) with reporting entities covered by the statement. Consultation evidence: workshop records + interviews + survey of subsidiary risk owners + Board to Board engagement + Country Managing Director consultation + procurement leads engagement + relevant function consultation (HR + Legal + Procurement + Sustainability + Operations). Joint statement coordination (Section 14(2)) for parent entities filing on behalf of subsidiaries + each subsidiary acknowledgement evidence + consolidated risk view + group-level policy coverage + collective due diligence. Criterion 7 - Any other relevant information including: corporate strategy alignment + UN Sustainable

• Criterion 6 consultation evidence (workshops + interviews + surveys + Board-to-Board)
• Joint statement coordination evidence (parent + subsidiary acknowledgement)
• Criterion 7 SDG 8.7 + 5.2 + 16.2 alignment + UNGC + GRI 408/409/414 + SASB + ISSB + ASRS reporting integration
• Principal governing body Board approval evidence (Section 14)
• Statement signed by responsible member of principal governing body
• McMillan Review 30 recommendation alignment evidence

• Consultation evidence formal only without substantive engagement
• Joint statement signed by parent only without subsidiary acknowledgement
• Other information (Criterion 7) omitted or generic
• Statement not signed by responsible member of principal governing body

Address Mandatory Criterion 3 of Modern Slavery Statement under Section 16(1)(c) - describe risks of modern slavery practices in operations and supply chains of reporting entity + entities owned or controlled by reporting entity. Risk identification methodology including: country-level risk indicators (Global Slavery Index + Walk Free Foundation + ILO Forced Labour Index + USDOL List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor + TIP Report State Department Trafficking in Persons Report) + sector-level risk (high-risk sectors include textile + apparel + footwear + electronics + agriculture/horticulture + fishing + mining + construction + cleaning + hospitality + healthcare + transport + warehousing + ICT manufacturing) + product-level risk (cocoa + cotton + coffee + tea + sugar + tobacco + tin + tantalum + tungsten + gold + palm oil + seafood + bricks + carpets + electronics + appare

• Criterion 3 risk assessment with country + sector + product + workforce indicators
• Global Slavery Index + Walk Free + ILO + USDOL List + TIP Report integration
• High-risk sector identification (textile + electronics + agriculture + construction + cleaning + hospitality + ICT etc)
• High-risk product identification (cocoa + cotton + coffee + sugar + 3TG + palm oil + seafood etc)
• Migrant worker + recruitment fee debt + visa-tied workers risk assessment
• Home Affairs Sector-Specific Guidance adoption evidence

• Risk assessment relies on country-level only (no sector or product nuance)
• Workforce-level risks (migrant workers + recruitment fees) not assessed
• USDOL List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor not consulted
• Sector-Specific Guidance not adopted for high-risk sectors

Address Mandatory Criterion 4 of Modern Slavery Statement under Section 16(1)(d) - describe actions taken by reporting entity to assess and address modern slavery risks including due diligence and remediation. Policy framework including: Modern Slavery Policy + Human Rights Policy + Supplier Code of Conduct + Worker Code of Conduct + Whistleblower Policy + Anti-Discrimination Policy + Recruitment Policy. Contractual clauses with suppliers including: prohibition of modern slavery + audit rights + right to terminate + flow-down to sub-suppliers + remediation cooperation + Employer Pays Principle + zero recruitment fees + transparent recruitment + retention of identity documents prohibition + freedom of movement + freedom of association + decent working conditions + safe and healthy work + grievance access. Worker Voice and Grievance Mechanism including: direct worker grievance channel + an

• Modern Slavery Policy + Human Rights Policy + Supplier Code of Conduct + Whistleblower Policy
• Supplier contractual clauses (prohibition + audit + termination + flow-down + remediation)
• Employer Pays Principle implementation + recruitment fees prohibited + transparent recruitment
• Worker Voice + Grievance Mechanism (direct + anonymous + third-party hotline)
• Due diligence operations (Sedex SMETA + amfori BSCI + SA8000 + RBA + RJC + ASI + RSPO + Fair Trade)
• Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) tracking + remediation outcomes + workers receive remediation evidence
• Training records (procurement + HR + leadership + workforce)

• Employer Pays Principle not enforced with suppliers
• Worker Voice mechanism not anonymous or third-party operated
• Audits limited to Tier 1 suppliers
• Remediation outcomes not documented (workers receive remedy)
• Sector certifications used as sole due diligence without complementary measures

Address Mandatory Criterion 5 of Modern Slavery Statement under Section 16(1)(e) - describe how reporting entity assesses effectiveness of actions to assess and address modern slavery risks. Effectiveness measurement framework: outcome-based KPIs aligned with UN Guiding Principles tracking and remedy outcomes + input-based KPIs (training completion + policy coverage + supplier engagement rate) + process-based KPIs (audit completion + corrective action closure rate + grievance handling SLA) + output-based KPIs (suppliers assessed + workers reached + cases identified + cases remediated). Independent assurance options: third-party audit + ASAE 3000 ISAE 3000 limited assurance + reasonable assurance + Internal Audit second-line review + civil society engagement (Walk Free + Anti-Slavery Australia + Be Slavery Free) + Better Business Bureau + UN Global Compact peer review + Anti-Slavery Commi

• Criterion 5 outcome + input + process + output KPIs
• Independent assurance (third-party audit + ASAE 3000 + ISAE 3000 + Internal Audit second-line)
• Civil society engagement (Walk Free + Anti-Slavery Australia + Be Slavery Free)
• Annual review with Board involvement + lessons learned
• Sector benchmarking participation
• Emerging risk monitoring (climate + war + COVID-19 + cost-of-living + AI)

• Effectiveness assessment limited to compliance metrics (no outcome KPIs)
• Independent assurance limited or absent
• Civil society engagement formal only without substantive feedback
• Lessons learned not incorporated into next-year actions

Manage Modern Slavery Statement reporting period alignment + submission deadlines + Register publication. Reporting period must align with entity financial year (typically 1 July to 30 June for ATO-registered Australian entities OR calendar year for foreign entities). Submission deadline 6 months after end of reporting period (Section 13B). First reporting period was for financial year ending after 1 July 2019 with submission originally due 31 March 2020 (extended to 30 June 2020 due to COVID-19). Subsequent annual reporting required. Modern Slavery Statements Register (Section 18) maintained by Minister at modernslaveryregister.gov.au + publicly searchable + free access + statements remain on register indefinitely. Entity must lodge each year unless deregistered or below threshold (with voluntary continued reporting encouraged). Joint statements permitted (Section 14(2)) for parent enti

• Reporting period aligned with financial year evidence
• 6-month post-period-end submission tracking
• Modern Slavery Statements Register lodgement confirmation
• Statement remains on Register evidence
• Late submission Minister explanation response (where applicable)

• Reporting period not aligned with financial year
• 6-month deadline missed without Minister explanation
• Register lodgement not confirmed
• Statement signed by non-principal-governing-body member

Establish the legal foundation of Australian Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth) Act No. 153 of 2018 + Royal Assent 10 December 2018 + commenced 1 January 2019 + administered by Department of Home Affairs Modern Slavery Branch + Anti-Slavery Commissioner Office established 2024 with inaugural Anti-Slavery Commissioner Chris Evans. Reporting Entity Threshold under Section 13: entities with consolidated annual revenue of AUD 100 million or more during reporting period + Australian entity OR foreign entity carrying on business in Australia + Commonwealth Government entity (mandatory regardless of revenue) + voluntary reporting by entities below threshold. Approximately 3,000+ entities lodge Modern Slavery Statements annually. First reporting period due 31 March 2020 (extended to 30 June 2020 due to COVID-19) + subsequent annual reporting due 6 months after end of reporting period. Modern slavery

• Section 13 threshold assessment (AUD 100M consolidated annual revenue)
• Australian entity OR foreign entity carrying on business in Australia determination
• Commonwealth Government entity mandatory determination
• Voluntary reporting evidence if below threshold
• Joint statement structure (Section 14(2)) where applicable
• First reporting period determination + financial year alignment

• Threshold assessment based on revenue not consolidated annual revenue
• Foreign entity scope determined without 'carrying on business in Australia' analysis
• Joint statement structure unclear for global parent entities