Modern Slavery Policy

The requirements and provisions of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 are intended to promote ethical business practices and policies that protect workers from being abused and exploited in their own organisations and in global supply chains. In the interest of transparency, this policy document sets out SiC’s stance on slavery and human trafficking, and its compliance with the Act.

Background

SiC was founded in 1947 to specialise in the application of technology and precision engineering to disinfection and decontamination. Consequently, it has some long-lasting partnerships with some of Europe’s most prestigious companies such as Miele, Dr Schumacher and Dr Weigert of Germany. All its suppliers are domiciled in the European Union, and all its employees live and work in the United Kingdom. In assessing the risk of unwittingly becoming involved in a situation where slavery, servitude or human trafficking could exist or arise, SiC segregated its activities into two major areas of risk:

• Employment within our organisation
• Our supply chain

Employment within our organisation

It is SiC’s policy to comply with all UK employment laws. In support of this, SiC funded its own due diligence in having external legal counsel draw up its contracts of employment. Consequently, each employee has a specific contract of employment that complies with UK employment law. SiC has also prepared and distributed a supporting employment manual to explain the employer’s and the employee’s responsibilities under their contract. The employment manual also sets out SiC’s zero tolerance approach to workplace coercion, bullying or threats. Employment within SiC is strictly on a self-voluntary basis where pay and reward are on an equitable basis without discrimination on any grounds.

Our Supply Chain

SiC sources all its products from organisations within the European Union. The clear majority are purchased directly from the manufacturer. If not bought direct, then the products would be obtained through another UK-based organisation. While this approach significantly mitigates the risk of becoming an unwitting party to the outlawed practices embodied in the Act, it does not eliminate this risk completely. Consequently, as part of SiC’s “supplier on boarding” process, SiC requires prospective suppliers to affirm that their own employment and supply chain policies subscribe to the good practices set out in the Act.