Modern Slavery Statement

We are committed to respecting workers’ rights, in line with the International Labour Organisation Core Conventions on Rights at Work and we expect our contractors, suppliers and partners to do the same.

Our code of conduct and human rights policy state Arksen Labs’ support for the elimination of all forms of modern slavery such as human trafficking, forced labour and child labour.

Our code of conduct is based on our values and clarifies the principles and expectations for how we work at Arksen Labs. It applies to all employees of The Fashion Incubator Limited. Employees are required to report any human rights abuse in either our operations, or those of our contractors and other business partners. The code of conduct makes explicit reference to the role all parties can play in the elimination of human trafficking, forced labour and child labour.

Our human rights policy commits us to respect all internationally recognised human rights as set out in the International Bill of Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. It also references the core labour standards as described in the ILO Core Conventions on Rights at Work. We recognise our responsibility to avoid complicity in human rights abuses – including modern slavery – as described in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and continue to incorporate these principles into our business processes.

Where we identify failures by our employees to adhere to our code of conduct and policy, we take appropriate steps to address those failings. This may involve disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment. Similarly, if a contractor or supplier fails to act in a manner consistent with our expectations or their contractual obligations, we look to work with them to resolve the issue to provide remedy to the people affected. If a serious breach is found and no corrective action is taken, we reserve the right to terminate contracts.

In addition to requiring employees to report human rights abuses, we expect them, and encourage contractors, communities and other third parties to speak up if they see something which they think could be unsafe or unethical. We encourage a ‘speak up’ culture among employees and with our contractors and suppliers. At our worksites we help make sure people are aware of our workforce grievance mechanisms. We promote the use of these channels without fear of retaliation.

At executive leadership level, we will continue to provide oversight on all group-level operational risks, which includes sustainability issues such as modern slavery.

Our approach to supplier labour rights and modern slavery due diligence is prioritised and evidence- based. We carry out pre-contract due diligence, including a sustainability questionnaire which enables us to identify whether suppliers are able to meet our labour rights and modern slavery expectations, whether additional controls are appropriate to help manage the risk associated with a particular supplier or contractor activity, and how to introduce them.

At Arksen Labs, we encourage a ‘speak up’ culture among employees and with our contractors and suppliers in their work for us.

Working to ensure that workers have easy access to grievance mechanisms that they trust significantly strengthens our ability to respect the rights of our employees and others who work for us, by helping to identify and address potential risks to the safety and welfare of our workforce.

We continue to take steps to enhance the accessibility and effectiveness of the grievance mechanisms available, and make our workforce feel able to raise grievances without fear of any form of retaliation. Our code of conduct clearly states that we have zero tolerance for retaliation, which includes threats, intimidation, exclusion, humiliation and raising issues maliciously or in bad faith. This stance is further reinforced in our human rights policy.

If we find that we have caused or directly contributed to adverse impacts on workforce rights, we are committed to provide for, or cooperate in, the remediation of those impacts and work with our contractors and suppliers to encourage them to do the same, in line with our human rights policy.

Our training and capability building activities include:

• Providing training on our code of conduct, which underpins and reinforces elements of our human rights commitments. We train our employees about how to apply the code of conduct in their daily work.
• Improving site and contractor understanding of our labour rights and modern slavery principles and of their role in promoting them.

We know that early engagement with our contractors, suppliers and partners, before undertaking labour rights risk assessments, is important in building awareness and capability to support preventative, corrective or remedial actions.

We remain open to dialogue, collaboration and constructive challenge. We expect our approach to managing the risk of modern slavery to continue to evolve as we learn from our risk reviews, refine our practices and continue to build capability in our organisation. We know that there is more work to do and we cannot achieve this on our own. Where we encounter challenges, we will do our best to resolve them, working collaboratively with others.

Responsible Business Statement

This statement was approved on 01/03/2023 by our leadership team, who review and update it annually. Steve ThomasCOO Arksen Labs01/03/2023