7 February 2022

A coalition of human rights groups, churches and academics have called on the government to strengthen the Modern Slavery Act after a scathing report into company compliance with the law.

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But a new report released on Monday revealed that 77 per cent of companies are failing to meet all of the criteria required to ensure the risks of forced labour are addressed in their supply chains.

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The report's authors have called on the government to further strengthen the Modern Slavery Act, two years after it came into effect, to ensure companies are held accountable for their chosen supply chains.

Non-compliance with the law's requirement for companies to conduct an annual report currently attracts no penalty - it is one of the recommendations the report authors are urging the government to adopt.

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Justine Nolan, the director of the Australian Human Rights Institute at the University of New South Wales, explained the law's current approach on mandatory reporting defeats the purpose of what the law should achieve: reducing the risk of modern slavery happening.

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