With the increasing emphasis on corporate human rights due diligence regulations, it’s imperative for companies to have robust mechanisms in place for collecting, addressing and remediating grievances from within a company’s value chain. Labor Solutions’ Labor Line is a leading solution for businesses striving to create a safer, more responsive, and legally compliant workplace throughout their value chain. Labor Line is a Labor Solutions managed global complaints and grievance mecahnism to ensure workers have access to remediation. Global companies are now required and or strongly encouraged by several new and emerging human rights due diligence regulations to have third-party grievance mechanism for their entire supply chain to ensure workers have a safe, anonymous, and accessible way to report concerns or violations. The German Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains and the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDD)both require a complaints procedure for rights holders within a company’s value chain. The United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the United States Government National Action Plan on Responsible Business Conduct strongly recommend and encourage businesses to provide a grievance mechanism for supply chains. In response to these new laws, Labor Solutions developed Labor Line, a purpose-built case management system that streamlines the grievance process while ensuring compliance with new and pending legislation. As a global, Labor Solutions managed, supplier engaged helpline, it offers: Labor Solutions Managed: All cases come directly to LS who triages the case, ensures appropriate escalate and response and responds to the worker once the case is ready to be closed. From engaging sites for initial resolution to providing oversight and follow-up, Labor Solutions acts as your partner in maintaining a socially responsible supply chain. Propose Built Case Management System: Track actions through a live online dashboard and save data for regulatory reporting. Supplier Engagement:  Allow suppliers to respond to cases first, when appropriate. The case management system provides suppliers with access only to necessary information, fostering transparency and accountability. Worker Protection Protocols: Ensure cases are answered and triaged according to your protocol, with high-risk issues escalated appropriately. Customized Protocols: Labor Solutions triages the case according to your needs and requirements. Features of Labor Line: Multi-Channel Access: Workers can report issues via voice, SMS, WeChat, Call WhatsApp, Viber, Email, and more, making the system globally accessible and multilingual. Multilingual + Globally Available Robust Data + Reporting: Aggregate and detailed data are available for in-depth analysis and reporting. Educate Workers First : Integrate eLearning to educate workers on their rights and responsibilities. With Labor Line, companies can quickly comply with global human rights regulations and support long-term, comprehensive solutions. Call to Action: Want to take the first step towards a more compliant and worker-centric supply chain? Reach out to us to learn how Labor Line can transform your grievance mechanism process.

2023 was marked by significant developments in supply chain and human rights regulations, including the implementation of the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (SCDDA, or LkSG) and the European Parliament's agreement on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), as well as several countries' laws on modern slavery and forced labor (amongst other key issues). A shift in expectations on buyers for risks throughout their value chains has companies globally reexamining their supply chain relationships, human rights policies, practices, and compliance programs.    Many leading global companies with complex supply chains have turned to Labor Solutions to help design programs to meet these new regulations at scale. In 2023, Labor Solutions introduced new tools, made improvements to existing ones, and saw our tools bring about a significant impact while reaching more workers and suppliers than ever. We also launched 20 new eLearning lessons for workers, managers, and practitioners. Labor Solutions’ thought leadership continued to push forward for better worker rights and working conditions through publications and speaking engagements.    Improving the Lives of More Workers than Ever  Labor Solutions’ mission is to improve the lives of workers. In 2023, we ensured more workers than ever had access to the tools needed to protect their rights and improve their livelihoods.   We reached over 300,000 more workers last year—now WOVO is in the hands of more than 1.8 million workers globally.  Expanded tools and services to 3 new countries and added 2 new languages . We now offer support in 30 countries and 26 languages.    More Workers Know Their Rights + Responsibilities. More Managers + Leaders are Equipped with Knowledge of Worker Rights Workers who know their rights are more likely to speak up . WOVO’s Educate tool continues to be key to implementing a successful human rights due diligence program.    200,000+ lessons on rights + responsibilities were completed in 2023, helping to ensure workers are safer. 20 new lessons for both workers and practitioners launched, including Inclusive Leadership, Access to Remedy, Responsible Recruitment, Child + Forced Labor and more to help ensure safer and more respectful workplaces. Increased worker productivity, engagement, and safety are clear outcomes for companies that launch WOVO Educate for workers. See how a company leveraged WOVO Educate to gain a 23% increase in workers’ compensation satisfaction.   A Trusted, Scalable + Effective Grievance Mechanism for Workers Safe and anonymous grievance lines have been mandated by almost all the new HRDD regulations. Workers must have a way to speak up about unfair treatment and ask questions about their rights. Labor Solutions continues to manage the most effective operational grievance mechanism in the market.  730,000+ workers were given direct access to their employers to communicate and provide feedback – improving working conditions and business outcomes.  42,000+ cases were resolved by the employers with the help of WOVO – ensuring workers’ grievances were settled. When workers have direct and anonymous access to management, issues are addressed more quickly, workplaces are safer, and businesses do better.    Digitization of grievance cases with WOVO could help overcome challenges in management – a 2023 study by ILO concluded.   Engaging Workers + Suppliers Directly to Gather Transparent and Reliable Data Collecting responses from workers directly through a system embedded in their workplace, and engaging suppliers in the process to build accountability and trust provides an unique understanding of workers’ reality and perceptions of conditions in their workplace. WOVO Engage surveys provide real-time, structured data from workers, providing insights to suppliers and buyers to drive social change.  320,000+ workers responded to our surveys in 2023, providing an accurate and actionable representation of their experiences and perspectives. Social & Labor Convergence Program (SLCP) WE Tech Survey  added WOVO as an approved worker engagement tech (WE Tech) provider. Adding worker surveys to social compliance audits can lead to more representative audit results and enhanced worker safety.     Partnered with the Rainforest Alliance to integrate human rights + development indicators  into data collection from communities in Peru and Ecuador  to create unique Landscape Assessments - More Reliable + Integrated Tools for All Stakeholders.   WOVO Ecosystem Advancements: Simpler to Expand, Easier to Manage Given the scope of the new human rights due diligence regulations, scalability is key for multinational companies with complex supply chains. In 2023, we focused on reinforcing and enhancing our architecture to improve WOVO’s reliability, speed, and data management, and to support the needs of our growing client base for timely, actionable insights.   Our innovation and product teams focused on creating easy-to-use features and tools to reduce barriers to initiating due diligence programs globally and at scale, including: WOVO Improve :  an automated corrective action and improvement module based on survey and grievance results to help suppliers quickly identify the next steps, access needed tools and resources, and track and share their progress, with brand support.  HRDD Starter Kit: an easy-to-start + swiftly scalable toolkit for brands impacted by new legislation to get suppliers quickly up to date on HR(E)DD requirements and have access to key basic due diligence tools.   Our client advisors focused on helping clients expand their coverage to ensure more workers have access to the tools needed to protect rights and improve livelihoods.  87% of our clients expanded their projects – reaching more regions and utilizing a greater variety of WOVO tools. Our leading clients have hundreds of suppliers using WOVO regularly as part of their sustainability and human rights monitoring and reporting system. Thought Leadership in Action: Webinars, Blogs + eBooks The Labor Solutions team continued to be seen as a leading voice on social sustainability. Our unique approach to improving human rights within supply chains by engaging and supporting suppliers and workers has resulted in an increased demand for speaking engagements and consulting services across a wide range of industries and member organizations globally.    Labor Solutions’ leaders shared insights from a decade of experience at UN Responsible Business & Human Rights Forum Asia-Pacific, Bloomberg’s Sustainable Business Summit, Asia Institute of Management’s Asia Forum on Enterprise for Society, OECD side sessions, Sustainable Apparel Coalition’s Manufacturer Forums, EuroCham events + more. Published insights on our blogs + introduced two publications: an eBook on  “Strategies for Effective Human Rights Due Diligence in Your Supply Chain”  and a guide on  “Practical Tips on Leveraging Worker Voices for Improvements.” These free guides provide more depth and explanation of our methodology and approach, as well as recommendations from our decade of worker engagement.   Subscribe to Our LinkedIn for Updates, Trends + Insights.   What’s Ahead for 2024 – Celebrating 10 Years of Improving the Lives of Workers   In 2024, Labor Solutions will celebrate 10 years of improving the lives of workers. We continue to be thankful to our clients and partners who have enabled and supported our growth over the last decade, and we are excited to be able to continue our work and ensure workers remain at the center of due diligence and sustainability.    In 2024, Labor Solutions will continue its unwavering commitment to improving supply chain risk management through education, connection, and engagement of suppliers and workers. Recognizing the integral roles that buyers, suppliers, and workers play, we will continue to improve our tools to ensure we meet the needs of all stakeholders.    2024 will see a continued focus on automation and scalability. Labor Solutions continues to believe that tech tools alone are insufficient for creating change—people must act on results to drive long-term improvements. So, in 2024, our innovation and product teams are working on tools to make understanding and acting on reports easier, more responsive, and more intuitive. We will continue to automate reports, as well as provide real-time recommendations + improvement plans to ensure workers’ voices are not only heard but also provide insights that drive strategy and organizational change. From sharing graphs and data visualization to signing in, we want to make it as easy to interact with our tools as possible!   Innovative thought leadership on social impact and sustainability in ESG is key to the growth of our industry. Labor Solutions is committed to driving the industry forward by ensuring investors, executives, and boards have the language and frameworks necessary to talk about their business and value chain’s impact on humans and the actions necessary to reduce risk and harm.    We will also continue to assist businesses engaged in international trade in understanding worker engagement and navigating supply chain regulations through our free  Resources  and public engagements. As our footprint grows so will our Programs + Kits  – making value chain sustainability projects more accessible and easier to start.    We are proud of the work we have done and look forward to another year of shared impact, engagement, and improvement!

Audit programs are vital for assessing compliance and sustainability within supply chains, but they may miss major risks to worker safety and rights. Recent media reports ha ve highlighted that audits are insufficient in detecting risks, especially in issues related to forced labor and other labor abuse incidents.   Continuous engagement methods like worker surveys and grievance mechanisms are an effective augmentation to audits, helping to identify workplace problems.   Using Worker Surveys to Better Inform Social Audits Recognizing the limitations of traditional methods, multinational companies, multi-stakeholder initiatives, and industry standards like the Social & Labor Convergence Program (SLCP )   are now incorporating worker surveys into their assessment process. These surveys are anonymous, offering workers a safe space to share feedback - allowing buyers and suppliers to collect larger sample sizes at scale, and detecting trends in the workers’ responses.   These workers’ responses can help identify localized issues that otherwise may go unnoticed. Surveys, when appropriately deployed, provide more representative results, engage more workers at once, and help reveal facility patterns for risk management.   Worker Surveys also have incredible val ue for employers. By identifying and addressing workplace issues, employers can mitigate safety risks, save time and costs, and retain workers. Employers who leverage workforce data to proactively resolve issues also reduce compliance costs and attract buyers.     [Learn more about the benefits of including direct employers in worker surveys]   Using Grievance Mechanisms to Monitor Issues Audits and surveys are useful to evaluate working conditions at a point in time, but they may not catch unexpected incidents. Having an effective grievance mechanism and worker dialogue program between employees and their direct employers (through committees, working groups or mediated by trade unions) can provide real-time insights for improvement.   For example, audits can confirm fire exits are well-maintained, but if a fire exit is blocked, the employer needs to be notified to take immediate action to prevent injuries. A supplier-owned grievance mechanism provides a channel for workers to report incidents, ask questions, or offer suggestions.   Encouraging constructive communication from workers can also prevent dissatisfaction, and safety issues and helps management act before problems become harmful. By tracking and categorizing worker questions and complaints, management can identify when prevention or additional communication may be necessary. For instance, posting a document or holding an information session for all workers might be a better approach than individually responding to similar questions.   WOVO Connect is a Labor Solutions ’ platform for direct employer-employee communication. It is a digital grievance mechanism that protects workers' anonymity while allowing two-way dialogue. The case management system enables employers to easily manage communications, including tracking of response times and issue types while workers, on the other hand, can give feedback directly to their employers. Buyers get real-time aggregated data to strengthen existing systems and foster a collaborative approach between all stakeholders.   [Learn more about How One Factory Reduced Fire Safety Accidents by 80% using WOVO Connect + Educate]   Continuous Engagement over One Time Data Collection Worker surveys and grievance mechanisms are beneficial for improving compliance and worker safety. Continuous monitoring of workplace safety through engagement with workers allows for the collection and analysis of real-time data throughout the year, enabling immediate action instead of waiting for one-time audits or an OSH disaster. Utilizing a digitized platform can save time and money, as well as prevent accidents and workplace injuries.   As countries demand proactive measures to address workplace risks, customers will ask about your monitoring programs. Use WOVO to comply, gain control, and make informed decisions with reliable data.

The EU Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (CSDDD) is a regulation that is commonly referred to as the "EU Directive on Due Diligence", "CSDDD" or "CS3D". It requires certain businesses to identify, prevent, mitigate, and account for the potential adverse human rights and environmental impacts of their operations and value chains. The CSDDD is expected to be finalized in 2025 and will apply to businesses that have significant operations or sales in the EU, as well as businesses that sell products or services in the EU. It is important to note that the CSDDD is not the same as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which is a broader reporting framework that encourages companies to report on their sustainability activities. The CSDDD focuses specifically on corporate due diligence on human rights and the environment, including prevention and remedy, and will feed into CSRD reporting. If you want to find out if your company is affected by the CSDDD and how to comply with it, keep reading. This is important information for both European companies and their suppliers. Brief Overview The CSDDD, just like other recent human rights and environmental due diligence laws such as the LkSG (German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act), requires businesses to follow a due diligence process that aligns with the OECD Guidelines and UN Guiding Principles. These laws aim to address the potential impacts of your business and supply chain partners' operations and sourcing on workers and other people who might be affected. However, they do not require you to identify and remedy the risks of these operations to your business. The scope of these laws and the companies directly impacted, as well as the supply chain partners included, vary from law to law. It's important to note that EU Directives must be implemented by national law to be effective, so please check with your legal counsel about your legal requirements. This summary is intended to provide a general overview for informational purposes. Does CSDDD affect your business? The EU Directive on Due Diligence will affect fewer companies than originally planned. However, many large companies based in the EU or with significant EU operations will be covered. The regulation will apply to both European and foreign companies with 1,000 employees and a turnover of €450 million during the five-year phase-in period. Companies with 5,000 employees and €1,500 million turnover will be impacted first and should expect changes within the next three years. The high-risk sector approach has been removed temporarily, but it may be considered in the future as part of the CSDDD. If your business does not sell or operate in the EU, you may not be directly affected by the CSDDD. However, you may still be impacted due to your association with value chain partners. If you are a contractor, subcontractor, manufacturer, service provider, distributor, or retailer for a European business (or other business that falls under the CSDDD), you may notice changes in your contractual relationships that enable regulated businesses to comply with their obligations. These new regulations make each business responsible for human rights and environmental issues in its supply partners, distributors, and customers. Therefore, any company that conducts business with a company that has a significant European presence, or operations could be affected indirectly. By being prepared, the impact of these new laws can be minimized, as explained below. After the EU Directive is finalized, each EU member state will have to pass national legislation to implement it, which may vary slightly from the original directive. The national legislation is expected to be passed by 2025, and each company will have to consider which national laws apply to its operations and what specific requirements they entail. You can keep track of the progress of the EU Directive on Due Diligence . Are you ready for the upcoming CSDDD? Don't let the changes catch you off guard. Allow us to help you kickstart to ensure a seamless transition. Practical Guide for CSDDD Compliance Requirements: To work with EU buyers, it's important to be prepared for their requirements, which may vary slightly across member states implementing their version of the CSDDD. Direct Requirements: HRDD Process, Internal Governance + Supply Chain Grievance Businesses that are directly regulated will be obligated to implement a human rights due diligence process that is similar to the LkSG and other HREDD regulations. This process consists of six steps: design, assess, identify, prevent, remediate, and report. The goal is to identify and manage human rights and environmental risks, establish internal governance standards, and implement a human rights policy with a grievance mechanism for impacted individuals to report issues or complaints. Labor Solutions has covered these in detail in eBook " Strategies for Effective Human Rights Due Diligence in Your Supply Chain ". Indirect Requirements: Support Identification, Prevention, Remedy and Reporting Indirectly regulated businesses must collaborate with their directly regulated supply chain partners to comply with new regulations. This involves updating contractual obligations and codes of conduct, providing training and support, fulfilling reporting requirements, and implementing other mechanisms that satisfy the law. Obligations: Scope of Risks Responsible New in the CSDDD (and different from some other HRDD) is the scope of the risks and operations that are covered. For example, the LkSG requires that only the risks presented by direct suppliers (and risks posed by indirect suppliers if known) must be addressed, prevented, and remedied. On the other hand, the CSDDD proposes that partners both upstream and downstream be included in the scope of responsibility, which is likely to encompass indirect suppliers. Scope of Actions Required These regulations pertain to business practices rather than reporting requirements or compliance laws. As such, they call for a distinct approach from what may be accustomed to. To comply with these regulations, it's necessary to continually monitor and proactively engage with customers and suppliers to ensure a focus on preventing and minimizing the negative impact of human rights and environmental issues on people. Labor Solutions assists suppliers and regulated businesses in collecting quality data for better business and purchasing decisions. Labor Solutions offers tools like advisory and consulting work, as well as the HRDD Starter Kit that provides scalable solutions to meet CSDDD and HRDD requirements. The most important thing is to start, and you don’t have to do it all alone. First Steps to Compliance: HRDD Process Regulated businesses must perform due diligence, including risk assessment, identification, prevention, remediation, and reporting. More details about this process can be found here. The scope of risks and operations may differ, but it is always advisable to start understanding the general risks associated with the countries and industries you source from. This will help you identify specific risks in your value chain through surveys, grievance tools, audits, and assessments. When working with your suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders, start engaging with your supply chain partners. The suppliers should be responsible for conducting identification efforts, operating their grievance management system, implementing prevention methods, and remediating complaints. The objective is not to micromanage but to build trust and support mechanisms for suppliers when needed. Grievance or Complaints Process Businesses that are directly regulated must establish a complaints process or grievance mechanism that is accessible by workers and other individuals who may be affected by any company within your value chain. There are several service providers available that offer hotlines and grievance tools. However, it is essential to ensure that not only is there a communication channel, but it is also effective in collecting complaints and providing effective solutions. Our eLearning library offers a comprehensive range of courses to help you understand the requirements better. For example, our practitioner training on Access to Remedy provides detailed information on the elements of effective remedies and how to choose an appropriate service provider. We also recommend that you educate your suppliers about the new requirements. Our online modules on human rights due diligence can be customized to meet your company's specific needs and can assist you in communicating the due diligence process to all your direct and indirect suppliers effectively, across various risk-based categories. Suppliers and indirectly regulated businesses can prepare for the new due diligence requirements of their CSDDD buyers by following a few simple steps. We have helpful blog posts on this topic. Contact our advisory team if you need assistance in creating a risk management system. Start with conducting a Worker Survey to help identify the potential risks. Implement WOVO's Connect features to ensure that you have an effective grievance mechanism and case management system in place to identify and prevent issues. Deploy our eLearning courses on rights and responsibilities or responsible recruitment to ensure that workers and managers know their responsibilities and rights, thus helping mitigate the risks. Collaborate with our advisory team to design a remediation plan. Use your WOVO dashboard to report and track trends. Labor Solutions' supplier ownership, empowerment, and improvement approach is not only scalable but also allows companies to tackle the problem at the source and collect unparalleled data sets. Our solutions go beyond tick-box solutions and are designed to help your business meet the intent of labor laws while creating customized, sustainable solutions built around respect and trust between workers, buyers, suppliers, and brands. For more information, here are some of our previous posts on HRDD and how to work with your suppliers to meet the new requirements.

Ensuring transparency and ethical practices throughout the supply chain has become a legal imperative for businesses.  More and more HRDD regulations necessitate responsible sourcing practices and the protection of human rights at every stage of the value chain. However, many suppliers find themselves ill-equipped to meet these emerging obligations. Labor Solutions' new Five Parts Business + Human Rights Course educates suppliers on the UN Guiding Principles on businesses and human rights. It employs a blended classroom approach that is interactive and scalable - ensuring that participants not only learn the theory but also understand its practical application in their supply chain. Course Structure: Four Digital Lessons: Introduction to Human Rights Due Diligence:  A primer on the foundational elements of HRDD and its implications for your supply chain. A State’s Duty to Protect Human Rights:  How governmental responsibilities intersect with business operations. Corporate Responsibility to Respect Human Rights: Navigating the business's role in human rights preservation within the supply chain. Access to Remedy:  Exploring mechanisms for addressing grievances and non-compliance within the HRDD framework.   3-Hour Live Practicum: An expert-led, interactive session, learners will : Act out three case studies to apply the principles learned. Review example policies to contextualize the learning. Draft a sample implementation plan to visualize the path forward. Engage in risk prioritization exercises to strategically focus their efforts. The lessons use real-life examples and explain global trends to emphasize HRDD principles' relevance to business operations. After completing digital lessons, participants attend a 3-hour live practicum led by experts. This hands-on session helps stakeholders prioritize risks, review policies, act out cases, and set implementation plans. The aim is to leave with a clear framework to effect change locally. This HRDD course is an affordable and flexible program, coming with global online reporting to ensure all suppliers are up-to-date. By taking this foundational step towards responsible business conduct, suppliers can align their operations with human rights principles. If interested in building a more ethical supply chain , reach out to Labor Solutions today  to learn more and get started!

In 2021, almost 28 million people were in forced labor worldwide, highlighting the prevalence of exploitative conditions and the importance of addressing forced labor in supply chains. With more countries passing laws to ban products made with forced labor, it is critical for global companies to proactively address this issue within the value chain or risk facing financial and legal liabilities or import bands. Education is a key step in the prevention and identification of forced labor. Sari, an Indonesian migrant worker in Malaysia, was recruited through a distant relative. The work required enduring meager pay and harsh conditions for the first year. But she believed this to be a normal rite of passage and hoped for improvement in the next year. Caught in this cycle, she even unknowingly perpetuated the misconception to her own family members. In many cases even hiring managers may also lack awareness of ethical considerations and downplaying labor rights due to inadequate knowledge, cultural norms, and workplace pressures. Addressing these gaps in awareness among workers and line managers is essential to fostering a culture of respect for labor rights and ethical conduct within the supply chain. In 2023, Labor Solutions released 20 new lessons, including two for managers and four for workers on responsible sourcing and preventing forced labor in their workplaces. These lessons aim to reduce risks throughout the supply chain by ensuring both workers and management teams know what forced and child labor is, what responsible recruitment is, and how to report incidents for effective prevention. [View our complete eLearning catalog] The Role of Managers in Preventing Forced Labor The eLearning courses help managers eradicate forced and child labor from supply chains. They provide a practical understanding of regulations, best practices, and workers' rights. Managers can identify, prevent, and address human rights violations with the knowledge and skills gained from these two lessons. • Introduction to Human Rights Due Diligence • Introduction to Responsible Recruitment Empowering Workers to Recognize + Report Forced Labor The eLearning lessons for workers provide tools to recognize signs of forced labor and take appropriate action, created in collaboration with Better Work, RISE, and JustGoodWork, • Fair Working Conditions • Right to be Free from Forced Labor • Responsible Recruitment for Workers • Introduction to Grievance By educating workers on their rights, workers are equipped with the knowledge of what is right or wrong. With WOVO Educate global companies can share training with workers throughout the value chain with one click. [How One Brand Exceeded their 3-Year Training Goal in Less than a Year by Digitizing Safety Trainings] Labor Solutions' WOVO Educate + Lessons With accessibility, flexibility, and scalability at the core of Labor Solutions’ learning management system, WOVO Educate can reach managers and workers globally at any time. The micro-learning model saves time and bandwidth, enabling workers and managers to access responsive and targeted training. These interactive courses are designed to be engaging and effective, resulting in improved learning outcomes for participants. The lesson contents are also designed in partnership with industry-leading organizations: Better Work: A partnership between the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to set standards for working conditions and support workers through tripartite collaboration (governments – unions – business). Better Work provides in-country monitoring and advisory support to improve working conditions in the global apparel and footwear industry and make the sector more competitive. RISE (Reimagining Industry to Support Equality): An initiative to support collaborative industry action at scale, to advance gender equality in global garment, footwear, and home textiles supply chains. JustGoodWork & Fifty-Eight : An organization & mobile application that prioritizes supporting migrating workers and ensuring they have safe workplaces and access to their rights. Fifty-Eight uses data and evidence to advance public knowledge in providing good work for people everywhere, helping businesses align with their primary purpose in society: to provide products and services that are good for people. As new regulations on supply chain human rights and responsible business conduct continue to evolve and tighten, businesses must stay ahead of the curve and ensure compliance throughout supply chains. Labor Solutions empowers managers and workers to become advocates for human rights through a collaborative approach and proven eLearning courses. Contact to discuss how Labor Solutions can provide a turnkey solution to tackle forced and child labor in the supply chain.

Background Managers at a Cambodian factory noticed a significant spike in wage-related questions on their Worker Engagement Dashboard report. They were concerned. By sorting the messages and focusing only on those related to wages, they found that all the inquiries were related to a decision by the Cambodian government to change the minimum wage. Workers had sent many anxious messages, wanting to know how they would be impacted. Outcome Through WOVO, management responded to individual inquiries letting workers know that they were aware of the concern and waiting for an announcement from the Ministry of Labor. In responding to workers directly, they were helping build a culture of communication and trust. Additionally, they sent out a broadcast message to all employees letting them know that the company was waiting for more information and would communicate with workers as soon as they had received it. Then, once the Ministry of Labor announced the new minimum wage, factory management sent out a company wide post via WOVO sharing the government’s decision and letting workers know how it would impact wages at their company. In doing so, factory management reiterated that the government, not factory leadership, was responsible for the change in wages. The timeliness of this message, made possible by WOVO, was pivotal in explaining the situation, sharing important information, and helping prevent a potential strike by workers, who were disappointed in the amount of the minimum wage adjustment.

Labor Solutions supports Puma’s Human Rights, Women’s Empowerment and Worker Engagement strategies in 6 countries, Vietnam, China, Cambodia, Philippines, Turkey and Indonesia. In 2023, Puma expanded its worker engagement programs via WOVO. Now   nearly 65K workers have access to the WOVO platform with access to human resource tools, grievance management platform, worker surveys and eLearning  modules.   Puma also expanded deployment of the Better Work e-learning course on Discrimination and Elimination of Violence and Harassment at Work via Labor Solutions’ mobile app WOVO to support their women's empowerment stragety. The module was deployed in Cambodia and Indonesia and reached 51% of workers in eight factories. Read more about Puma’s Sustainability initiatives in its 2023 Human Rights Report .

The ILO's latest study on union federations in partnership with Labor Solutions concluded that unions are facing challenges in managing grievance data and that digitization with tools like WOVO could help them overcome these challenges. The ILO conducted the study with the support of its Strengthening Industrial Relations in Indonesia project , the Bureau for Workers' Activities (ACTRAV) , and Labor Solutions, a tech and advisory social enterprise. The focus of the study was two main federations and their confederations in the garment sectors, as well as five other union confederations and three independent union federations in the palm oil and fishery sectors. The study aimed to develop recommendations for confederations, federations, and local trade unions on how to improve their grievance management process and overcome challenges. Challenges Faced by Indonesian Unions in Managing + Using Grievance Data The study found that union federations with members in multiple regions are struggling to manage data on union membership and grievances. Their current data is often incomplete, and outdated, and does not provide useful insights or support for advocacy and reform. The study also found that the existing grievance management systems created by each federation are good for managing and resolving cases, but they are not good for other things that the federations do, such as advocacy and reform. The systems also do not support the federations' plans for growth and development in the future. However, the study confirms that trade unions play a vital role in grievance mechanisms and provide essential services to their members. Some federations that participated in the study leveraged technology and online tools to connect with their members and intake grievance cases. Recommendations from ILO to Trade Unions The study concluded with "a set of recommendations as follows: Digitization is found to a good for problems associated with scaling and data collection and analysis. Digital tools can automate processes that are resource-intensive and make complex data more user-friendly and easy to understand. Trust-based connections and communications with workers developed by federations are identified as the strength of the federations that should be maintained using the existing communication channels. Development of a dashboard-based case management system for each federation that allows federation officials at any level to input new cases from any available channels such as social media, web-based form and WhatsApp, review the status of open cases and support new case investigation and resolution. Development of case categorization through tagging and custom or individualized categories so that data can be easily analyzed and lessons learned incorporated into future case management. Buy-in and support from each level of the federation are critical. The federations should be aware of concerns from factory-level trade union representatives and ensure that they are convinced of the value of the new features and are able to navigate them to support their work." How WOVO Connect Can Help Multi-stakeholder Initiatives WOVO Connect is a grievance + safety case management system for complex supply chains. It is a two-way anonymous communication system that directly connects workers through various channels, including SMS, QR Codes, Instant Messaging Services, or via the WOVO platform itself. The platform also provides aggregated, real-time data that is comparable across different regions and over time. The dashboard also provides insights that can help pinpoint problematic areas to proactively make changes. Based on the program objectives, the data, and results can be shared with buyers, suppliers, or other third-party organizations like labor unions to promote transparency, and autonomy, and empower local facilities.

Background: Access to social benefits and a proper remuneration is the right of every employee. Fixed minimum wage standards and prompt payments are requirements set by international labor-focused organizations that must be fulfilled by every company. Like several of our clients in manufacturing, Factory Six faced challenges in providing prompt salary payments and remuneration. This was a result of two factors: internal technical issues with the company’s payroll system, and the inability to notify employees of delays. Consequently, the number of questions and grievances regarding late payment continued to increase. In January 2017, 30% of messages from employees recorded by Factory Six were regarding payroll. The Challenge The Labor Solutions account manager coordinated with our internal data analyst and product development team to propose a strategy to help Factory Six overcome this issue. First, we worked with the factory to develop standard announcements to be sent using the broadcast feature available on the WOVO platform’s dashboard. The message templates were developed to suit a variety of different needs—some of which announced anticipated delayed payment, and others providing specific details on when salaries would be paid. All messages were scheduled to be sent two weeks prior to the anticipated pay date. Next, we worked with Factory Six to implement the technology. Through the application, management was able to post calendar reminders for each pay period and also submit detailed information related to remuneration and benefits in the form of newsletters. This provided the ability to manage communication to all employees at once, or specific groups, directly from their online dashboard. As a result, the total number of messages related to payroll have decreased by 83% percent, in just three months after the strategy was implemented. These efforts have helped Factory Six better structure its communication, and thus give employees a sense of security in knowing when their salary will be paid long before the actual date. In its efforts to continue this improvement, Factory Six has since utilized the calendar feature on the dashboard effectively. We noted that managers have scheduled reminders on pay dates months in advance on the dashboard. Updates: Labor Solutions has since launched a Payslip feature to help Factory Six and other organizations follow compliance standards and communicate customized payroll documentation to each employee via our WOVO app.