From notebooks and office furniture to cleaning and bathroom supplies, the products we deliver to Australian workplaces pass through many hands before they reach our customers. We believe it matters how those products are made and how the people making them are treated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That is why COS has released its first Modern Slavery Statement. Covering the year ended 30 June 2020, it explains the steps we have taken to better understand modern slavery risks in our operations and supply chains, and where we will focus our efforts next. The statement was approved by COS Founder and CEO Dominique Lyone on 25 March 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Looking more closely at our supply chain<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n COS sources products from more than 200 suppliers. While most of our suppliers are based in Australia, many of the products we purchase are manufactured overseas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During the 2020 reporting period, we introduced a framework to assess modern slavery risks among our product suppliers. It considers factors such as where a product is made and how much its production relies on manual labour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our initial assessment found a medium potential for modern slavery risks across our operations and supply chain. No suppliers were rated high risk under the framework, while 12 significant suppliers were rated medium risk. These are assessments of potential risk, and the findings give us a clearer starting point for further work with suppliers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Turning assessment into action<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We established a modern slavery working group, updated our Ethical Sourcing Policy and added a modern slavery risk assessment to our supplier introduction process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our next focus is to engage with the significant suppliers identified as medium risk. During the 2021 reporting period, we plan to introduce updated supplier terms, seek supplier self-assessments and provide targeted training for relevant COS team members. We will also review how people can raise concerns about modern slavery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is our first statement and an important step in understanding the risks connected to the products we supply. We know there is more work to do, and we are committed to learning and improving our approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n