Seqwater is committed to minimising the risk of modern slavery in our supply change and internal operations.

The Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth) came into effect on 1 January 2019. The Act established a national Modern Slavery Reporting Requirement.

What is Modern Slavery?

Modern slavery describes the crimes of human trafficking, slavery and slavery-like practices such as servitude, forced labour, forced or servile marriage, the sale and exploitation of children, and debt bondage.

The United Nations (UN) and Walk Free Foundation estimate there are approximately 40 million victims of modern slavery around the world. Sixteen million of these victims are exploited in the private economy. Australia is not immune to modern slavery. 

The Australian Government (the Government) estimates there were 1,567 modern slavery victims in Australia between 2015 and 2017. Modern slavery can occur in every industry and sector. It is also often linked to other crimes and activities that adversely impact human rights, such as corruption and environmental damage.

At Seqwater we recognise our corporate responsibility to address potential modern slavery risks associated with our organisation.

Our approach

We understand the importance of recruiting and remunerating our employees appropriately and sourcing goods and services responsibly. We make a conscious effort to source suppliers based within Australia as part of our procurement practices in line with the Queensland Procurement Policy that emphasises sourcing local and ethical suppliers. Our goal is to work with our suppliers to increase our understanding of our supply chain and support informed decision making within our procurement practices. This will include educating our employees and suppliers and setting a clear expectation of our modern slavery requirements.

Our statement

In compliance with the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth), every year, Seqwater must submit a Modern Slavery Statement to the Australian Border Force. Our Modern Slavery Statement includes information on our structure, operations and supply chain, our risk assessment, actions taken and actions planned to address modern slavery risks within our operations and supply chain.

Seqwater's Modern Slavery Statement for FY2022-23 is available here.

Modern Slavery Statements of all reporting entities is made publicly available on the Australian Government’s Online Register for Modern Slavery Statements.