Preventing Exploitation: Why Modern Slavery Risk Management Is a Business Imperative

Modern slavery remains one of the most pervasive human rights challenges of our time. Global estimates from Walk Free (2023) reveal that 50 million people were living in modern slavery in 2021, including 28 million in forced labour, 22 million in forced marriage, and 12 million children trapped in the worst forms of child labour.

Modern slavery describes situations where individuals cannot refuse or leave exploitation due to threats, coercion, deception, or abuse of power. It encompasses trafficking, servitude, forced labour, debt bondage, deceptive recruitment, forced marriage, and child labour.

While few businesses intentionally engage with unethical suppliers, all organisations carry responsibility for ensuring their operations and supply chains are not contributing—directly or indirectly—to exploitation.

The Hidden Nature of Modern Slavery

According to research from the Australian Institute of Criminology, four victims remain undetected for every one identified, meaning around 80% of victims in Australia receive no support and remain trapped in exploitation.

The UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery (2025) warns that migrant workers, asylum seekers, Indigenous people, and people with disabilities face heightened vulnerability—particularly in sectors such as agriculture, food processing, healthcare, hospitality, cleaning, and security.

Common workplace indicators or ‘red flags’ may include:

• No formal contract or misleading terms – workers without written agreements, or documents they cannot read or understand.
• Wage control or unfair deductions – withheld wages, below-minimum pay, or unpaid entitlements.
• Confiscated identification – passports or visas held by employers or labour agents.
• Excessive hours or unsafe work – extremely long shifts, no rest days, or hazardous conditions.

These signs often occur far from day-to-day corporate operations, which makes proactive risk management essential.

Why Businesses Must Act Now

Businesses face both ethical and legal expectations. Under the Commonwealth Modern Slavery Act 2018, entities with annual consolidated revenue of $100 million or more must assess and address modern slavery risks across their operations and supply chains.

However, organisations below this threshold are increasingly expected—by customers, investors, and partners—to show transparency and take meaningful action.

Early action enables businesses to:

• Prevent exploitation before it escalates
• Strengthen governance and supply chain resilience
• Demonstrate alignment with global sustainability and ESG expectations
• Build trust with customers, communities, and stakeholders

Practical Steps Organisations Can Take

A structured and credible approach includes:

• Securing senior leadership commitment
• Engaging staff from across the business
• Mapping and assessing supply chains to identify high-risk sectors and suppliers
• Training employees to recognise indicators of modern slavery
• Implementing robust policies, action plans, and remediation pathways
• Publicly reporting on risks, actions, and progress

Addressing modern slavery is not a one-off compliance task. Because risks evolve over time and often sit deep within supply chains, organisations must embed ongoing engagement, continual improvement, and transparent reporting into core business operations.

How Cress Can Help

Cress supports organisations to identify, assess, and manage modern slavery risks, whether reporting under the Act or taking a voluntary leadership approach.

Our team provides tailored support across policy development, risk assessments, supplier engagement, training, and reporting—helping businesses take practical and credible steps toward protecting human rights and strengthening supply chain resilience.

If you’d like support building a stronger, more responsible approach to modern slavery risk management, or have any questions then please don’t hesitate to Contact Us.

Cress is the Hydroflux Group’s in-house sustainability consulting team, operating as a specialised division and driven by a simple but powerful goal: to help organisations across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region create a more sustainable future. As a young and agile team, we combine technical expertise with fresh, forward-thinking approaches to help clients navigate complex challenges across climate risk, emissions reduction, modern slavery, water stewardship, and ESG reporting, building on the Hydroflux legacy of engineering excellence while bringing a sustainability lens to the industries and communities shaping the future of our region.