“The shipping industry’s long voyage toward supply chain transparency”

…A combination of tightening regulation and the trend towards ESG reporting are creating market pressure for supply chain due diligence and transparency across many sectors. The maritime industry is no different…

Vessel owners and operators in Norway and the European Union were some of the first to come under pressure from clients and investors to comply with ethical sourcing programmes and to report on labour practices and human rights in their supply chain…

Even where national legislation doesn’t demand detailed reporting, there is a growing desire to align with the prevailing trend. This increased awareness reflects the emergence of the issue as a reputational risk, particularly thanks to investigations by the media, NGOs and IGOs…

Beyond the baselines of the OECD best practice framework and ISO standards, the primary driver to the increased focus on reporting are two European Union instruments, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD)…

Audits conducted by Achilles have uncovered troubling conditions at construction and repair facilities in the Middle East and Asia. Facilities in these regions commonly employ migrant labour recruited through agencies and abuses have included debt bondage, passport retention and even forced labour…