The remediation framework is set out in Appendix 10, including timelines, corrective action and reporting obligations.

Remediation of child labour:

When remediating a case of child labour, there can be different steps in the process, which can include:

The UoC should engage in a process of developing corrective actions to prevent child labour reoccurring. This can include:

Potential measures to prevent child labour include:

Given the complexity of human rights issues, partnership with external partners is often necessary to provide effective remediation. They can:

These potential partners can include:

Potential support that these partners can provide could include:

documented remediation procedures

records and documents of any remediation process that has taken place

records and documents of any corrective actions that have been put into place

documented monitoring system in place.

existence of effective and appropriate remediation procedures;

knowledge and capacity of staff to implement remediation procedures;

the ability of the site to monitor any corrective actions within their management system;

knowledge and capacity of staff to develop corrective actions, where necessary.

Eliminating Child Labor, Best Practice for Remediation, GoodWeave <https://goodweave.org/best-practice-briefs/#:~:text=The%20GoodWeave%20System%20is%20a,root%20causes%20of%20child%20labor>

‘No engagement’ means that child labour does not occur:

Child labour is any unacceptable form of work carried out by children and is prohibited by ASC, including the following:

Table 2 below shows the ages of children and the type of work that they are permitted to engage in:

ILO notes: ‘Not all work done by children should be classified as child labour that is to be targeted for elimination. The participation of children or adolescents above the minimum age for admission to employment in work that does not affect their health and personal development or interfere with their schooling, is generally regarded as being something positive. This includes activities such as assisting in a family business or earning pocket money outside school hours and during school holidays. These kinds of activities contribute to children’s development and to the welfare of their families; they provide them with skills and experience, and help to prepare them to be productive members of society during their adult life.’

If children are assisting at the UoC as part of it being a family business, this would be covered by the scope of this Criterion.

age verification records

employee contracts

job descriptions of all employees.

presence of general risk factors for child labour in a country;

NGOs’ or other local organisations’ knowledge of any reports of child labour in the sector in this region;

human resources personnel’s awareness of any issues in the workplace;

worker or union representatives’ awareness of any issues in the workplace;

whether or not any children are present at the UoC;

that employees and managers have an understanding of what is hazardous work and what is light work;

confirm life or work histories of employees, when a suspicion exists that the age of an employee does not match the records.

What is Child Labour? What is child labour | International Labour Organization (ilo.org)

Supplier Guidance on Preventing, Identifying and Addressing Child Labour, ILO <https://www.ilo.org/ipec/Informationresources/WCMS_792211/lang–en/index.htm>

Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil Guidance on Child Rights for Palm Oil Producer <https://rspo.org/wp-content/uploads/RSPO-GUI-T08-007_V1_ENG_Guidance_on_Child_Rights_for_PO_Producers.pdf#:~:text=The%20RSPO%20standards%20require%20palm,for%20employees%20and%20their%20families>.

Rainforest Alliance Child Labor Guide <https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/resource-item/child-labor-guide-an-introduction/>

FAO Guidance on addressing child labour in fisheries and aquaculture: <https://www.fao.org/3/i3318e/i3318e.pdf>

The words ’employer-operated’ here includes the UoC itself and any services that they may contract to operate a store or service.

Requiring employees to purchase goods or services from employer-operated stores or services is a form of economic coercion and can limit their economic freedom and choices.

Prices of goods and services should be based on an understanding of reasonable pricing of the same goods and services in the local market. Employers can also make this transparent by providing a cost breakdown of these goods and services.

employee contracts

payslips and pay records

any cost breakdown of goods and services in the local market.

if there are employer-operated stores and services on site;

the prices of goods at these facilities;

if any deductions are made from wages for goods purchased on site;

employees’ perception of their ability to choose where to purchase goods or services.

If family members wish to be employed, the UoC respects their right to make independent employment decisions by contracting them separately.

This indicator can be met by:

employee contracts.

whether family members live on site, which can increase the likelihood that they may work at the UoC;

everyone working at the UoC has an employment contract.

The UoC may provide housing for employees that meets the terms of Criterion 3.11: Employee Accommodation.

When the UoC provides housing, whether it owns, leases or contracts the accommodation from a service provider, the UoC communicates to employees that living in this housing is optional for them.

The freedom for employees to choose where they live respects employees’ dignity and autonomy and prevents coercion and potentially trapping them in exploitative conditions.

employee contracts.

whether the worksite is easily accessible via public or private transport

how many employees live in accommodation provided by the UoC

that the decision to reside in accommodation provided by the UoC is the employee’s own choice

In order to ensure that the employee is freely able to leave the workplace as per Indicator 3.2.11, the UoC provides reasonable transportation for employees to reach nearby communities when:

company policy about transport for remote sites

transport logs / schedules

vehicle maintenance logs

third party transport contracts.

whether there are public transport options to the site;

how employees travel to and from the work site;

available vehicles for transport appear safe and sufficient;

there are no transport fees in wage records.

Keeping employees trapped at the workplace is a key indication that there is forced labour.

Preventing this can include that employers communicate to employees that they are allowed to:

employee contracts

working hours records.

that employees understand that they are free to leave the site when they are not on their shifts;

that there are no restrictions evident, such as locked gates, or external locks on dormitories.

The UoC should ensure that employees’ access to drinking water is unrestricted.

Free movement of employees to use sanitary facilities and access water:

clearly labelled sanitary facilities and drinking water.

that employees are aware of this requirement and feel able to access these basic needs.

This indicator only applies if loans and/or advances are provided by the UoC to its employees.

The policy should be documented and accessible and could for example include the following items:

loans and advances policy

payslips and pay records

signed agreements with the employees who are entering into the loan.

that employees understand the conditions around loans and advances.

Prison labour often involves the use of incarcerated individuals under conditions that can amount to forced labour.

Such employees may not have the freedom to choose their employment, which may be assigned as a condition of their incarceration or reintegration.

This indicator applies to any person held involuntarily, which includes:

employee contracts

written agreements with any recruitment agencies.

whether any recruitment agencies are used, and where they source employees from.