Waste management: The circular economy and increasing recycled content sourcing have put the spotlight on human rights and working conditions in the waste management/sorting and recycling sector, in particular in countries with an informal waste management sector. Whilst the role of informal waste pickers is very valuable for recovery of secondary materials, especially when public waste management structures are lacking, the working conditions of these pickers are often sub-standard, including risk of child labour, migrant worker exploitation, etc. AIM-PROGRESS is investigating the feasibility of an SAQ/assessment/audit module, specifically targeted at recyclers/PCR suppliers.
Excessive working hours: AIM-PROGRESS members continue to encouter working time violations, particularly in geographies where working time legislation is absent or not in line with internationally recognised standards. Through discussions at meetings, the AIM-PROGRESS membership is trying to share and identify best practices on how to mitigate excessive over-time.
Buyer engagement: Operational good practices on how to promote buyer engagement in responsible sourcing is scarce, and our Human Rights work stream is currently reviewing existing literature and initiatives around the topic. The plan is to identify relevant guidance in 2020, and potentially complement this with an FMCG-specific angle.
