You must show commitment to the pursuance of the highest standards of health and safety, and the provision of a safe and healthy working environment, which includes minimising the risk of contagious diseases in the workforce, for individuals in accordance with the national minimum requirements of the relevant countries and with due consideration to the international standards set out in International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions.

The following provisions constitute minimum and not maximum standards and should not prevent companies from exceeding these standards. Furthermore, where local laws relating to the provision of proper working conditions and employment and working practices stipulate certain general standards but provide that certain businesses (for example, small businesses) are subject to lower or no set standards, you are required to demonstrate compliance with these general standards.

General responsibility for health and safety should be assigned to a management representative and a clear description made available of the formal agreements and communications between employer and worker representatives on issues related to health and safety.

Investigation of work-related accidents (and diseases, contagious or otherwise), fatalities and record keeping of incidents, their causes and subsequent remedial action, should be undertaken to prevent repetition.

Co-operating fully with workers’ representatives for health and safety and appropriate safety authorities to provide on-going programmes of improvements and solutions to potential hazards is encouraged and the company should provide a mechanism for workers to raise and discuss health and safety issues with management.

Policies and procedures should be established to ensure that workers are not under the influence of, or abusing, drugs, alcohol and/or illegal substances.

Where the entity uses and stores Hydrofluoric Acid in its business processes, the entity shall provide effective training to all relevant workers, and maintain records. Where the entity uses and stores Hydrofluoric Acid in its business processes, the entity shall develop and document robust decontamination procedures to respond to any hazardous incident involving Hydrofluoric Acid.

Discrimination can mean distinction, exclusion or preference; and, therefore, policies and procedures should be documented clearly to take account of issues relating to the hiring, discharge, pay, promotion and training of workers. No worker should be discriminated against on the basis of race, caste, national origin, religion, age, disability, physical appearance, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, membership of worker representative bodies or political affiliation or any criteria that are unlawful at any level of the organisation including the corporate governance body.

In particular, there should be policies in place to ensure that men and women workers are protected against discrimination based on their marital status. They should be protected against threats of dismissal or any other disciplinary action that negatively affects their employment status that are taken if they get married or become pregnant.

There should be equal opportunities for both men and women across all aspects of training, personal and professional development and career advancement.

Workers should have the right to express their grievances or concerns without suffering any prejudice or retribution and to have that grievance or concern examined according to written and appropriate procedures.

Discrimination and disciplinary appeal procedures should be established and effectively communicated to all employees.

Deductions from wages as a disciplinary measure shall not be permitted nor shall deductions not provided for by national law be permitted without the express permission of the worker concerned.

Deductions will not be made without following due process, for example, deductions such as pension contributions etc are allowed but deductions due to equipment requirements or being required to purchase personal protective equipment are not. Deductions must not result in the workers being paid below minimum wage.

The definition of ‘child labour’ set out in the United Nations International Labour Organisation Minimum Age Convention (138), and as set out below, must be adopted.

‘A child is defined as any person less than 15 years of age unless local minimum age law stipulates a higher age for work or mandatory schooling, in which case the higher age shall apply. Child labour is therefore any work by a child younger than this age and any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child’s education, or to be harmful to the child’s health or physical, mental, moral or social development.’

Human trafficking is the movement of an individual across international borders or within a country and can result in forced labour. Companies will be held accountable if they source goods and/or use services provided by exploited workers. Relationships with third party recruitment agencies should be monitored as they expose a group/company/facility to the risk of human trafficking.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states ‘no-one shall be held in slavery or servitude’ and ILO Convention 29 defines forced or compulsory labour as ‘all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which said person has not offered himself voluntarily…’. This requirement and definition must be adhered to at all times.

The selection and recruitment of workers must be carried out to industry-wide standards and there should be no forced, bonded or involuntary prison labour.

Where the facility employs contract or auxiliary workers, they must demonstrate they have vetted the recruitment agency to ensure workers do not incur commission fees or any other fees in connection with an offer of employment.

Workers should not be required to lodge deposits or identity papers with their employers and they should be free to leave their employer after reasonable notice at which point all necessary documentation and assistance should be given to them.

Where the facility operates hostels for workers, these workers (and their dependants, as applicable) should have reasonable freedom of movement within the accommodation to come and go.

The entity shall provide effective training to relevant employees to identify and address risks of human trafficking in its own business and in its supply chain.

Risks of human trafficking within the company, from suppliers, contractors and through recruitment agencies, shall be assessed and addressed during the selection and recruitment process.

The Entity shall have processes to identify human trafficking activities internally and/or within third party recruitment agencies employed by the entity.

The entity shall take measures to identify and address human trafficking risks in its supply chain.

The entity shall meet all relevant and applicable legislative requirements with respect to human trafficking, such as the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (UK).

Each worker shall be treated with fairness, equality, respect and dignity.

The responsibility of entities is to respect internationally recognised human rights which at a minimum should be considered at those expressed in the International Bill of Human Rights, ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.

Entities should have a documented policy that demonstrates their commitment to respecting internationally recognised human rights expressed in the International Bill of Human Rights, ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and also observe the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The policy should clearly address how entities protect and respect human rights and remedy any adverse effects.

Entities should identify and understand their key human rights risks across their geographic areas, business activities and business relationships. They should give equal consideration to civil and political rights (such as the right to freedom of association, the right to life and the right to be free from inhuman and degrading treatment) and economic, social and cultural rights (such as the right to an adequate standard of living, the right to just and favorable conditions of work and the right to safe and healthy working conditions).

Entities should adopt a risk-based approach to addressing and mitigating their human rights risks. Where relevant, entities should have in place adequate measures for remediating their adverse human rights impacts. Entities must track and communicate how human rights impacts are addressed.

No worker should be subject to direct or indirect physical, sexual, racial, religious, psychological, verbal or any other discriminatory form of harassment or abuse, nor subject to intimidation or degrading treatment. Particular attention should be given to individuals or groups of individuals who are at heightened risk of becoming vulnerable or marginalised.

Entities will only use armed security personnel when there is no acceptable alternative to manage risk or to ensure the personal safety of employees, contractors and visitors to the Facility.

Policies and procedures for security personnel will be established to ensure respect for the human rights and dignity of all people and to ensure the use of the minimum force proportionate to the threat.

Security staff, managers and other key personnel should receive training on policies and procedures concerning all aspects of human rights relevant to operations. They should be regularly trained to recognise and action any risks, threats or abuses of human rights. Particular attention should be given to vulnerable individuals or groups of individuals and issues such as workplace gender-based violence and sexual harassment or abuse.

Consideration of human rights performance should be a factor in any investment decision as well as the selection of suppliers/contractors.

The entity should have a policy in place to verify as to whether they are sourcing diamonds (or gold or platinum) directly or indirectly from Conflict-Affected or High-Risk Areas. If the entity is sourcing from a Conflict-Affected or High-Risk Area, a human rights diligence process shall be undertaken to assess the heightened risks of human rights impacts. The Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation provides a helpful guide to identify risks, establish policies, systems and risk mitigation strategies which can be found at OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected or High-Risk Areas.

In instances where entities have identified that they have caused or contributed to adverse human rights impacts through direct sourcing practices, the Entity must provide for or cooperate in legitimate processes to enable the remediation of these impacts. Identified risks should be addressed through implementing systems to manage and mitigate risks of causing or contributing to conflict and adverse human rights impacts.

As part of the entity’s Covid-19 response, the entity should ensure that workers’ human rights have not been adversely impacted. This could include issues related to health and wellbeing, employment status and rights, privacy rights in so far as they relate to health surveillance, and equal treatment and the principles of non-discrimination in accordance with applicable national laws.