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A fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building, who is studying for an MSc on construction companies’ responses to the Modern Slavery Act, has invited industry professionals to air their views on the issue in an online survey.
Concern about slavery in the construction supply has mounted recently, in large part due to the work of the CIOB, which has produced a toolkit to help companies tackle the problem. Willmott Dixon became one of the first major construction companies to sign up for the toolkit last week.
Wayne Roberts FCIOB, who works for WSR Construction Services and is working on his masters at the University of Wolverhampton, said he felt the response of contractors so far had been mixed.
“It has now been two years since the launch of the Modern Slavery Act and all major UK construction companies should now have published their anti-slavery and human trafficking statements on their websites,” he said.
“My research in April 2017 shows that while some companies are doing the bare minimum – providing a one-page statement – other companies such as Balfour Beatty, Kier and Interserve are leading the way with extensive online publications.
“But other major players have only recently published their statements on their websites, just in time for the deadline for companies who have a year end of 30 March 2017.”
Construction industry professionals can provide their views on the impact of the Modern Slavery Act by completing Roberts’ survey here.
