I Am a Reporting Entity Under the Modern Slavery Act: What Are My Obligations?

In Short

• The Modern Slavery Act 2018 requires Australian businesses with annual consolidated revenue over $100 million to submit an annual modern slavery statement to the Minister of Home Affairs.
• These statements must detail the company’s structure, operations, supply chains and actions taken to address modern slavery risks.
• Non-compliance can lead to reputational damage and potential penalties.

Tips for Businesses

Conduct thorough assessments of your operations and supply chains to identify and mitigate modern slavery risks. Implement robust due diligence and remediation processes, and ensure your modern slavery statement is approved by senior management before submission.

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Table of Contents

• What Does the Modern Slavery Act Address?
• Am I a Reporting Entity?
• What Are My Reporting Obligations?
• What Are the Penalties for Non-Compliance?
• How Can I Address Modern Slavery?
• Key Takeaways
• Frequently Asked Questions

Australia’s national Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Act) established an annual reporting requirement for organisations with annual revenue of at least $100 million. These reporting entities must comply with the Modern Slavery Act and submit an annual modern slavery statement to the Minister of Home Affairs. This article outlines your obligations as a reporting entity under the Modern Slavery Act.

What Does the Modern Slavery Act Address?

Modern slavery includes practices such as: 

• child labour;
• deceptive recruitment;
• debt bondage;
• forced labour;
• human trafficking;
• servitude; and 
• other forms of severe exploitation. 

The Act aims to create greater transparency and accountability in Australia by requiring reporting entities to recognise and publicly address modern slavery risks in their business operations and supply chains on a register. Furthermore, these entities are required to submit an annual modern slavery statement to the Minister of Home Affairs.

Am I a Reporting Entity?

In summary, you will be a reporting entity for the Act if:

• you have an annual consolidated revenue of more than $100 million; and 
• you are an Australian entity, or are carrying on a business in Australia; or 
• are a Commonwealth entity or company.

If you meet the above criteria, you should seek advice about your obligations under the Act.

What Are My Reporting Obligations?

Your primary obligation is to prepare an annual modern slavery statement to appear on the Modern Slavery Statements Register. Statements published on this register can be accessed online, free of charge.

Criteria for Modern Slavery Statements

In addition, you must prepare your modern slavery statement in the correct form prescribed in the Act and approved by an authorised person in your entity such as a director.

Voluntary Modern Slavery Statements

Suppose you do not meet the threshold for submitting a mandatory Modern Slavery Statement. In that case, you may submit a voluntary statement to the Minister of Home Affairs, which addresses the mandatory criteria listed above. However, you should carefully consider whether to submit a voluntary statement. If you volunteer a statement, you will be bound to it as if you were a mandatory reporting entity. If you cannot commit to this, you may prepare a voluntary statement and publish it on your website instead.

What Are the Penalties for Non-Compliance?

While there are no monetary penalties for failing to comply with the Act, the Minister may contact you to seek an explanation for your non-compliance. You may need to explain why you are non-compliant or undertake remedial action. Furthermore, due to the public nature of the framework, you may also risk damaging your organisation’s reputation.  

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How Can I Address Modern Slavery?

You can address modern slavery risks in your business operations and supply chains in three ways.

Staff Training

Your organisation can arrange internal training for your staff to build their awareness about modern slavery risks and how to identify them at work.

Modern Slavery Policy

By working with various teams in your business, your organisation can draft a modern slavery policy. This policy will explain how you address modern slavery risks in your business operations and supply chains. You can publish this statement on your website and share it with customers or other stakeholders.

Agreements

By embracing anti-slavery as part of your business mission, you can encourage other businesses to comply similarly. For example, you can include a clause in your contractor or supply agreements seeking a warranty that these parties will comply with the Act.

Key Takeaways

As a reporting entity under the Modern Slavery Act, you must submit an annual modern slavery statement. This statement must follow the required form and include the mandatory criteria set out in the Act. If your organisation does not have to submit a statement, you may still choose to submit a voluntary statement. In addition, your organisation can implement procedures such as staff training, drafting a modern slavery policy and compelling parties you work with to commit to anti-slavery practices. 

If you need help drafting your modern slavery statement or any queries regarding your obligations, our experienced business lawyers can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. Call us today on 1300 544 755 or visit our membership page.

Frequently Asked Questions