Worker Voice Data is the Next Solution to Help Businesses Address Modern Slavery
Nick Dexter, Board Member of Be Slavery Free, Principal Consultant at Edge Environment, and genuinely good human being.
Million Makers sets a new standard in harnessing the power of worker voice to inform businesses human rights due diligence from the ground up and from the people who know.
Millions of forced labourers worldwide are generating an estimated US$150 billion annually in profits for those who exploit them. In every modern home and office we are surrounded by the products of their labour; from the minerals in our smartphones to the shirts on our backs. The problem is entwined within the opacity and complexity of modern supply chains. No single entity can free these workers in isolation - so all companies and supply chain professionals must understand how they can do their part to understand their own supply chains and the workers within them to address this serious problem. Fortunately, organisations like Million Makers are diligently working to provide businesses with increased transparency and insight through worker voice data.
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What is Modern Slavery?
Modern slavery is an umbrella term that can take many forms including human trafficking, forced labour, debt bondage or bonded labour, and child slavery. It is the extreme exploitation of other people for personal or financial gain. They are tricked or coerced into this position and their freedom to leave is removed.
Australian-based Walk Free, a privately funded international human rights organisation, estimates that nearly 50 million people are trapped in modern slavery. These modern slaves are often forced to work in harsh conditions for little to no pay.
Why is Modern Slavery So Difficult to Eradicate?
Despite laws and international recognition of the problem, modern slavery can be very difficult to detect. In many cases, modern slavery can happen right under our noses.
Education - Unfortunately, there are many people, even those who work within the supply chain, that are completely unaware that slavery exists in our modern world.
Complexity of modern supply chains - Global supply chains are extremely complex. Some goods and products can change hands multiple times before they reach the end consumer. Despite best efforts, gaining visibility of supply chain actors beyond tier-two suppliers can be extremely challenging.
Challenges getting reliable information - Even when supply chain actors are known, understanding the lived experiences of vulnerable workers remains complex. Workers may fear that speaking out will make their situation worse.
How Worker Voice Data Provides insight for Ending Modern Slavery
All reputable companies would agree that modern slavery is an unethical (and illegal) practice that needs to stop and do not knowingly or intentionally engage vendors or suppliers who employ slavery practices. The opacity of modern supply chains makes obtaining detailed information about upstream supply chain partners difficult. If it is available, it may be unreliable or misleading leaving businesses at risk of complicity.
Past attempts to gather reliable information through social auditing programs have failed to identify human and labour rights issues within global supply chains which has led organisations like Million Makers to take a new approach through worker voice data.
What is Worker Voice Data?
Worker Voice Data is a collection of information gathered directly from workers to understand their experiences, needs, and concerns. This information can be gathered through numerous methods including surveys, interviews, and questionnaires.
This data offers a bottom-up opportunity to hear directly from workers within farms, factories, food service, fisheries, and other businesses regarding the type of work they perform, how they are compensated, and their working conditions. Ultimately, Million Makers provides a direct connection to workers deep in your supply chain. It allows your workers to share valuable data about their experiences anonymously, giving you a real insight into what is happening at sites within your supply chain.
What makes Million Makers different?
Million Makers believes in a worker-centric approach to collecting and sharing worker voice data. It is founded by a coalition of four non-profit organisations — Blue Number (US), Unseen (UK), The Mekong Club (Hong Kong), and Be Slavery Free (Australia). The coalition partners with local NGOs to introduce the program to workers and farming communities.
Self-Sovereign Identity - Million Makers believes workers deserve the right to protect their personal data through data ownership.
Anonymous Participation - Workers can participate in the program anonymously to avoid any risk or punishment for providing survey responses.
Payment for Workers - Million Makers believe workers should be fairly compensated for their participation. Upon completion, workers will receive a payment to a mobile wallet. The funds for this payment come from companies that purchase the data or reports to support their efforts in identifying human rights issues within their supply chain. About 80% of the money paid by companies to purchase the data goes directly to the worker.
Alignment with ILO (International Labor Organisation) - The worker voice data collected by Million Makers aligns with the indicators of forced labour that are established by the ILO and provides companies with actionable insights regarding modern slavery within their supply chains.
Worker voice data can be a powerful tool for organisations that aim to eliminate modern slavery from their supply chains. Million Makers will work with companies to customise their survey and results to bring the most value and benefit.
Email us at australia@beslaveryfree.com and book a time to chat with us about how Million Makers might help your business get to know your workers deep in the supply chain.