The German Act on Corporate Due Diligence, which came into force on January 1, outlines companies’ obligations for engaging with known human rights risks in their supply chains, requiring companies to identify risks to workers and take preventive measures to ensure their purchasing practices minimise these risks, according to a BBI report authored by Dr. Marsha Dickson.

The BBI has published a special report that analyses the available research, and confirms a link between purchasing practices and non-compliance and human rights violations. The findings reveal that buyer purchasing practices have the most known impacts on non-compliances related to working time, workers’ contracts, and workers’ compensation.

The report can inform global brands and retailers’ supply chain due diligence efforts, guiding them where to look in their own supply chains for possible risks, and supporting them to comply with the requirements of the new Act.

The institute’s supplier surveys are designed to enable subscribers to identify, manage, and address risks, and focus on the specific purchasing practices categories which are known to have the greatest impact on suppliers’ ability to operate sustainably, and meet their buyers’ codes of conduct.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)