Two of the waste sector’s largest membership and trade bodies have today (1 July) announced a joint commitment to tackle slavery, forced labour and human trafficking across the industry.
The Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM) and the Environmental Services Association (ESA) say they will leverage their combined membership to reduce the risk of modern slavery across their membership base and the wider sector.
In 2018, just under 7,000 people were formally identified as being potential victims of modern slavery in the UK, CIWM and the ESA said
They hope to achieve this by raising awareness and understanding of the issue, setting out clear codes of practice and sharing intelligence and guidance.
Sarah Poulter, CEO of CIWM, said: “Issues as complex as modern slavery can only be addressed through meaningful collaborative and cross-sector working.
“The UK waste and recycling sector has developed some of the most robust employment practices found anywhere in the UK but there is always more that we can do.
“Both CIWM and ESA have been committed to addressing this issue for some time now and a crucial first step was to recognise that we work in an industry where this can be a problem and to promote honest and open dialogue.”
Founded in 1898 and representing more than 5,500 individuals in the UK and overseas, CIWM is a professional membership body for people working in or with the waste management sector.
The ESA is the trade association representing the UK’s resource and waste management industry.
Modern slavery
In 2018, just under 7,000 people were formally identified as being potential victims of modern slavery in the UK, CIWM and the ESA said, up 300% from 2013.
Jacob Hayler is executive director of the ESA
The trade bodies claim the UK waste sector provides more than 120,000 jobs, 0.3% of total UK workforce.
Despite operating in a highly regulated environment with increasingly robust employment policies, the trade bodies said, the industry does embody “a number of characteristics” which can be exploited by criminal activity. These include high levels of sub-contracting and the employment of low-skilled temporary workers who often originate from outside of the UK.
Executive director of the ESA Jacob Hayler said: “Modern slavery is a horrific crime which can devastate lives and families and we know that the recycling and waste sector has been previously targeted by criminals. The ESA has set clear standards for its members, to help drive any criminal activity out of our sector, and these are enshrined within our code of conduct.
“In recognition that this affects whole sector and will require collaborative action to address, we are pleased to partner with CIWM to make this joint commitment today, working together to reinforce standards and compliance, to raise awareness and develop best practice, to share intelligence and to support our combined members develop proactive anti-slavery strategies.”
Steps
As a first step, CIWM and the ESA have committed to:
- Ensuring compliance with the Modern Slavery Act 2015 across all their operations and embedding related requirements in their respective Codes of Conduct for members.
- Collaborating with charities and other sector bodies and stakeholders to raise awareness and develop and share best practice in fighting modern slavery.
- Sharing intelligence with other organisations and regulators to help stamp out modern slavery where it arises.
- Working together to provide guidance and sign-posting support to help members and the sector to develop proactive anti-slavery strategies
- Work togethering to assess what training would be helpful for respective members.
Waste sector
Modern slavery is a well-documented issue in the waste sector, and awareness has grown in the past few years.
“The UK waste and recycling sector has developed some of the most robust employment practices found anywhere in the UK but there is always more that we can do”
Sarah Poulter
CIWM
In April 2019, Nigel Oseman, lead trainer at the charity Hope for Justice, called for businesses in the waste sector to do more to tackle human trafficking (see letsrecycle.com story).
In October of the same year, Jacqueline O’Donovan, managing director of O’Donovan Waste Disposal, called for SMEs to be vigilant in the fight against modern slavery (see letsrecycle.com story).
Just last week (25 June), three members of the “largest human trafficking ring ever exposed in the UK” were convicted of people trafficking offences following an investigation known as ‘Operation Fort’.
The Crown Prosecution Service says members of a Polish human trafficking organisation and their British co-conspirator lured victims from Poland to the UK with the promise of good accommodation and well-paid jobs, some of which allegedly involved sorting waste for a waste management company. Instead, they were “intimidated and exploited” and had their wages funnelled into bank accounts controlled by members of the gang.
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Source: letsrecycle.com Waste Managment
