Modern slavery is a crime and a violation of human rights. It takes various forms, such as slavery, servitude, forced and compulsory labour and human trafficking, all of which have in common the deprivation of a person’s liberty by another to exploit them for personal or commercial gain.

BCI Ltd has a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery, and we are committed to acting ethically and with integrity in all our business dealings and relationships, and to implementing and enforcing effective systems and controls to ensure modern slavery is not taking place anywhere in our own business or in any of our supply chains.

We are also committed to ensuring there is complete transparency in our own business and in our approach to modern slavery anywhere in our supply chains, consistent with the disclosure obligations of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. We expect the same high standards from our contractors, suppliers and other business partners. As part of our contracting processes, we will look for policies and actions against the use of forced, compulsory or trafficked labour, or anyone held in slavery or servitude, whether adults or children, and we expect that our suppliers will hold their own suppliers to the same high standards. This policy applies to all persons working for us or on our behalf in any capacity. This policy does not form part of any employee’s contract of employment and we may amend it at any time.

Responsibility for the policy:

BCI Ltd has overall responsibility for ensuring our policy complies with our legal and ethical obligations, and that all those under our control comply with it. BCI Ltd has day-to-day responsibility for implementing this policy, monitoring its use and effectiveness. Management at all levels are responsible for ensuring those reporting to them understand and comply with this policy and are given adequate training on it and the issue of modern slavery in supply chains. We encourage suggestions and other process improvements which should be addressed to our Managing Director.

Compliance with the policy:

We expect all suppliers and employees to read, understand and comply with our policy. The prevention, detection and reporting of modern slavery in any part of our business or supply chains is the responsibility of those working for us or under our control. We require you to avoid activity that might lead to any breach of this policy. Employees and partners must notify line relevant managers or a company Director as soon as possible if you believe or suspect that a conflict with this policy has occurred or may occur in the future. You are encouraged to raise concerns about any issue or suspicion of modern slavery in any parts of our business or the supply chains of any supplier. If you believe or suspect a breach of this policy has occurred, you must notify us via the relevant line manager or company Director. You should note that where appropriate, and with the welfare and safety of local workers as a priority, we will give support to our suppliers to help them address coercive, abusive and exploitative work practices in their own business and supply chains. If you are unsure about whether a particular act, the treatment of workers more generally, or their working conditions within any tier of our supply chains constitutes any of the various forms of modern slavery, raise it with your line Manager or company Director. If you believe that you have suffered any such treatment, you should inform your line Manager immediately and if that is not resolved use the grievance procedure.

We may terminate our relationship with suppliers, individuals, and organisations working on our behalf if they are found to breach this policy.