Modern Slavery Act 2018

What is Modern Slavery?

Modern slavery is a crime and a violation of fundamental human rights. It takes various forms, such as slavery, servitude, forced and compulsory labour, forced marriage and human trafficking, all of which have in common the deprivation of a person's liberty by another in order to exploit them for personal or commercial gain.

The Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney explains it as a crime of deception. Victims of modern slavery are often vulnerable, coming from areas where there is little possibility of work. They are offered a job, a chance to make money and to build a new life for themselves.

The job they are offered doesn’t turn out to be true and instead they are forced to work in difficult and degrading conditions, with little or no pay. The threat of violence, to themselves or their families, hangs over them and traps them in their situation.

Slavery-like working conditions can be found in factories, fields and fishing boats, within private residences and a multitude of other places where greed and corruption have overridden human values and specifically, Catholic social teaching.

As of April 2021, the UN estimated 40 million people worldwide are trapped in conditions of modern slavery and 4,300 people in Australia are enslaved. Unfortunately, it is a profitable business generating over US$150b a year.

The Modern Slavery Act

The Modern Slavery Act 2018 is a statuary reporting requirement for Australian companies to take steps to respond to the risk of modern slavery in the operations and supply chains they use.

What can you / I / we do?

As a Kildare Education Ministries College, we have a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery and are committed to acting ethically and with integrity in all business relationships.

Many products we buy or services we use create demand for slave labour. Make conscious decisions about the brand of coffee, chocolate, clothes etc you buy. Encourage others including your school friends, parish community and family to source slavery-free products and services.

As we work toward this goal, Pope Francis reminds us that the work of ending modern day slavery will be long, requiring courage, patience and perseverance and has called for a concerted effort from us all to promote integral human development in building a renewed society based on freedom, justice and peace. We are up for this challenge and invite our whole Marian community to join us as we enact our Christian duty to love and care for our neighbour.

Our Living Justice, Living Peace Charter, together with the Catholic Social Teachings of Human Dignity, Solidarity and Preferential Option for the Poor will be explored further to help guide each of us as we work towards this goal.

“The work of raising awareness must begin at home, with ourselves, because only in this way will we be able to then make our communities aware, motivating them to commit themselves so that no Human being may ever again be a victim of trafficking.” Pope Francis, Address 12 Feb 2018.

What are some of the Principles of Catholic Social Teaching?

HUMAN DIGNITY

We believe every human being is created in the image and likeness of God and therefore has inherent dignity that should always be safeguard

SOLIDARITY

We believe we are part of one human family and have a responsibility to help each person achieve their full potential.

PREFERENTIAL OPTION FOR THE POOR

We believe in prioritising the women, men and children most vulnerable to extreme poverty and injustice.

Useful resources

Australian Government Department of Home Affairs

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/criminal-justice/Pages/modern-slavery.aspx

Be Slavery Free

https://vimeo.com/324750931’

Global Slavery Index

https://ethixbase.com/esg-supply-chain-modern-slavery-time-to-act

Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney

https://www.sydneycatholic.org/solidarity-and-justice/anti-slavery/modern-slavery/

Caritas

https://www.caritas.org.au/

Student Wellbeing (continued)