Guidance

CGF/AIM-Progress Guidance on the Repayment of Worker-paid Recruitment Fees and Related Costs

The member companies of The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) Human Rights Coalition – Working to End Forced Labour (HRC) and AIM-Progress are committed to collective action to address risks of forced labour in global supply chains.

The HRC and AIM-Progress have developed this Guidance on the Repayment of Worker-Paid Recruitment Fees and Related Costs to establish good practices to support businesses in addressing fees, specifically as members work to apply the Priority Industry Principles. Together, the HRC and AIM-Progress believe this practical tool can facilitate more coherence, action and positive impact for workers around the world. This Guidance draws heavily from existing insights, notably Impactt’s Principles and Guidelines for the Repayment of Migrant Worker recruitment Fees and Related Costs, and practical experience of a range of member companies.

The focus of this Guidance is the repayment of recruitment fees and related costs – one critical remedy for workers. Broader engagement to address the root causes of unethical recruitment, improve how companies manage recruitment processes and controls, and prevent fees in the first place are needed in parallel. These other engagements are additional areas of focus for the HRC.