Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement Aliaxis UK Statement for year ended 31st December 2022

About this statement

Aliaxis is a global leader in advanced plastic piping systems for building, infrastructure, industrial and agricultural applications. Aliaxis provides communities around the world with sustainable innovative solutions for water and energy, leading the industry in a way that anticipates the rapidly evolving needs of its customers and of society.

Aliaxis Group S.A. (BE) is privately owned, with its global headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. The Group has grown by joining with like-minded local businesses to create a global company that delivers the best products and solutions wherever they are needed.

Aliaxis has a global workforce of over 15,000 people operating in over 40 countries.

In the UK, 580 employees are employed by Aliaxis UK Limited. As part of an overall group, we are committed to maintaining the highest ethical values in our dealings with employees, clients, suppliers and those employed in our supply chain.

Our aim is to improve people’s lives by living our values of commitment to care, passion to build and connect to win, and by making a difference, shaping a better, sustainable tomorrow.

Whilst we see no evidence of slavery within our supply chain, our Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement is our response to the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 and our commitment to actively work to prevent the use of modern slavery and human trafficking.

Our supply chain and risk assessment process

Our standard audit process, when taking on new clients or suppliers, is to undertake due diligence on each prospective business partner in order to confirm both regulatory compliance and high ethical standards on the part of those who wish to trade with us.

New and existing suppliers are asked to confirm the steps they are taking themselves to combat modern slavery and ensure that modern slavery is not taking place in their own supply chain.

Many of our larger suppliers are themselves subject to the requirements of the Act and have supplied copies of their own Statements complying with the Act. Other, smaller organisations have been asked to provide a commitment to combating modern slavery in their own operations.

A European supplier evaluation program commenced in 2018 which was designed to assess the quality and reliability of supply of the supplier’s products but with focus also given to a supplier’s ethical stand and their commitment to corporate social responsibility. Specifically, suppliers are required to indicate their commitment to combating modern slavery and human trafficking and their compliance with the Act, where applicable.

Aliaxis globally has also increased the requirement for all suppliers to sign up to the Aliaxis Supplier Code of Conduct or produce their equivalent, for us to approve, which demonstrates a commitment to protecting Human Rights (2023: 83% agreed, 17% alternative)

The results from these assessments strongly influence our decision to begin or continue trading with a supplier. We share the results of our assessment with each supplier as we wish to exert a positive influence on behaviour rather than simply refusing to engage in trade.

Our Standard Terms and Conditions include a clause specifically requiring a supplier to be committed to combating modern slavery and human trafficking.

We continue with our online supplier questionnaire which asks suppliers to confirm compliance with the Modern Slavery Act and to upload their related Policies. We will maintain the supplier survey going forward to assist us in focusing on vendors with a perceived higher risk

How our employees help tackle modern slavery

Although written commitments from our business partners to combat modern slavery are important, we believe the eyes and ears of our own employees who share Aliaxis values can be the most valuable asset in detecting modern slavery and acting on behalf of victims.

Onboarding

As part of our onboarding process, we share our Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking policy with employees. This shares our commitment to prevention of modern-day slavery and starts to embed our values and approach with new employees.

Training

On employment, we train our employees on our Code of Ethics which enshrines the values of honesty, fairness, deterring wrongdoing, complying with applicable laws, rules and regulations, and safeguarding. Although the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (“the Act”) is UK legislation, its aims and requirements are in complete harmony with our own culture and values.

Whistleblowing

Employees who may have concerns that an individual may be the victim of modern slavery or human trafficking are encouraged to raise concerns with their line manager if they feel comfortable in doing this, or with more senior managers. Aliaxis has instituted the following reporting channels to report concerns. Any concern raised through one of these channels will fall within the Whistleblowing Policy.

• a. An online form is accessible on the Ethics & Compliance intranet.
  This channel allows employees to report issues to the Whistleblowing Committee.
• b. Employees may also report issues via e-mail at alert@aliaxis.com

Ongoing commitment

Once again, we are pleased to confirm that during 2023 there were no instances of slavery or human trafficking that were reported within our organisation or that have come to our attention in any of our supply chains.

We remain committed to combating modern slavery and human trafficking and we continue our endeavour to be a positive influence on society and our trading partners by maintaining our own high ethical standards and by expecting them to share a similar commitment.

Peter van Bylen
Aliaxis UK Ltd
April 2024