Strengthening the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth)

Closes 1 Sep 2025

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PART A – Mandatory reporting criteria

The mandatory reporting criteria are set out in subsection 16(1) of the Modern Slavery Act and require a modern slavery statement to:

  1. identify the reporting entity
  2. describe the reporting entity’s structure, operations and supply chains
  3. describe the risks of modern slavery practices in the reporting entity’s operations and supply chains, and any entities that the reporting entity owns or controls
  4. describe the actions taken by the reporting entity and any entity that the reporting entity owns or controls, to assess and address those risks, including due diligence and remediation processes
  5. describe how the reporting entity assesses the effectiveness of these actions
  6. describe the process of consultation with any entities that the reporting entity owns or controls (a joint statement must also describe consultation with the entity giving the joint statement)
  7. provide any other relevant information.

The review acknowledged there was general agreement in consultations that the reporting criteria address fundamentally important elements of modern slavery risk management. The review recommended elements of the criteria be expanded, clarified and refined. The review also recommended consideration be given to moving the reporting criteria to delegated legislation (such as regulations or rules) to allow flexibility in revising the criteria over time.

The department is seeking views on the following proposed amended reporting criteria (italics indicate a requirement that may be outlined in delegated legislation, such as rules):

  1. identify the reporting entity, and if applicable, the entities owned or controlled by the reporting entity
  2. describe the entity’s structure, operations and supply chains
  3. describe the risks of modern slavery practices in the operations and supply chains of the entity, and its owned or controlled entities
  4. describe the entity’s (and if applicable, its owned or controlled entities’) actions in relation to modern slavery risks, including due diligence. This includes:
    1. actions taken to identify and assess risks of modern slavery practices
    2. actions taken to address modern slavery risks
      1. internal governance processes
      2. organisational policies
      3. training of staff
      4. engagement with internal and external stakeholders
    3. actions to monitor the implementation and effectiveness of its actions undertaken in relation to 4(a) and 4(b)
  5. provide information about the entity’s (and if applicable, its owned or controlled entities’) grievance mechanisms 
  6. provide information about the entity’s (and if applicable, its owned or controlled entities’) processes and actions to remediate modern slavery incidents
  7. describe the process of consultation in the preparation of the statement with any entities the reporting entity owns or controls (and, in the case of a reporting entity covered by a joint statement, with the entity giving the statement)
  8. include any other relevant information.

The aim of any changes is to increase clarity and simplicity in the reporting criteria as well as address feedback received by the review and the review’s recommendations. 

Further information on the proposed options to change the reporting criteria can be found in Part A of the consultation paper.

Do you support the potential changes to the reporting criteria? Are any further changes needed to the reporting criteria?

(Please select one)

Do you support the matters the department proposes to include in delegated legislation (such as rules)? If not, what changes are needed?

Note: these matters are indicated by italics in the introduction above. 

(Please select one)

Are there any challenges associated with including details about reporting criteria in delegated legislation? If so, what are they?

(Please select one)

Should additional guidance be developed to assist reporting entities to comply with the proposed changes to the mandatory reporting criteria? If so, what topics should be addressed by new guidance?

(Please select one)

Should a new criterion be added that requires entities to report on key actions or changes since their previous statement?

(Please select one)

Should reporting entities be required to report information about grievance mechanisms?

(Please select one)

Are there any sensitivities with requiring an entity to report on grievance mechanisms? Please consider any sensitivities relating to quantitative or qualitative information about grievance mechanisms that might be captured.

(Please select one)

Should reporting on remediation be a separate mandatory reporting criterion? If so, what specific information about remediation actions and processes should entities report on? Notably, the review explored requiring entities to report on the number of matters referred to law enforcement or other bodies, as well as to report on details of modern slavery incidents or actual risks.

(Please select one)

Are there any sensitivities with requiring an entity to report on remediation, noting information about remediation may include quantitative or qualitative information?

(Please select one)

Are there any specific safeguards we should consider to protect workers in relation to reporting on grievance mechanisms and remediation?

(Please select one)

Do the proposed changes to the consultation criterion address the lack of clarity currently experienced by reporting entities?

(Please select one)