Procurement managers in the utility sector are putting the final
touches to an initiative that will require their suppliers to disclose
details of performance on issues such as human rights and labour
standards.
The scheme, due to begin this autumn, is being managed by supplier
management information firm Achilles and will build on a supplier
database the London-based company already provides for the UK power
generation and distribution, gas and water sectors.
Achilles is also bringing together suppliers of utility companies to discuss the issues in Birmingham this month.
‘There is a clear drive among large procurers in the utilities industry
to expand the information currently provided on health, safety and
environmental issues into new areas such as human rights, labour,
corporate governance and corruption,’ said Mark Wilkinson, company
secretary at Achilles, which has signed up to the UN Global Compact.
About 70 companies, including EDF, ScottishPower and Severn Trent, use
Achilles’ Utilities Vendor Database, which covers almost 5000 large and
medium-sized suppliers. Purchasing managers use the database to
shortlist suppliers for contract tendering.
Under the new scheme, the suppliers will be asked to fill out an online
questionnaire on their labour and human rights performance, with
oversight by the CSR consultancy TwentyFifty. Detailed third party
verification is likely at a later date.
If successful, Achilles hopes to collate similar data on suppliers within the 16 other industry databases it provides.
