What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2018 Citizenship Report P&G identified a range of material issues, such as governance & ethical conduct, corporate transparency, product safety & ingredient transparency, climate, water, waste and packaging. Among these, protecting and promoting human rights stands out as a key material issue for P&G.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards              

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups P&G engages with:

Stakeholder Group

Employees

Investors

Consumers

Communities

External Business Partners

Authorities: Local – Regional – Global

Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs): Local – Regional – Global

Principal Industry and Business Associations

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics P&G consulted around 80 stakeholders – including investors, civil society groups, retailers, suppliers, industry organisations, experts and P&G employees – through a combination of on-line surveys and interviews.

What actions were taken by P&G to protect and promote human rights?

In its 2018 Citizenship Report P&G reports that it took the following actions for protecting and promoting human rights:

• Preventing child labour
• P&G does not permit the exploitation of children and does not use child labour in any of its global facilities. In 2014, P&G learned that children were picking postconsumer waste from landfills, which ultimately made its way to P&G’s upstream corrugate supply chain. Since then, P&G has stayed engaged with its corrugate supply chain and used its leverage to enable suppliers to address the issue and provide remedy to the children and their families. Remedy included, for example, establishing schools, enrolling and supporting affected children in the schools, launching mobile health clinics, developing skilled workshops and compensating parents for loss of income.

• Combatting forced labour
• P&G supports the Consumer Goods Forum Priority Industry Principles, which state that forced labour is an unacceptable human rights violation that can take multiple forms and must be addressed. Accordingly, P&G takes active measures to apply these Principles across its global value chains and operations, and seeks to apply them to all workers, regardless of their employment status, location, contractual arrangements or role.

• Fighting discrimination
• P&G is deeply committed to an inclusive culture and does not discriminate against individuals on the basis of race, colour, gender, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status, HIV/AIDS status or any other legally protected factor. In June 2017, P&G joined the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion, to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace and committed to continue to cultivate workplaces that support open dialogue on complex, and sometimes difficult, conversations about diversity and inclusion, implement and expand unconscious bias education and share best known – as well as unsuccessful – actions.

• Respecting the freedom of association and collective bargaining
• P&G respects its employees’ right to choose to join or not to join a trade union or to have recognised employee representation in accordance with local law. Where employees are represented by a legally recognised union or employee representative, P&G is committed to establishing a constructive dialogue regarding the interests of both the employees and the business. P&G will bargain in good faith with such representatives in accordance with local law and, regardless of whether a facility is union or non-union, P&G always seeks to create a high-performing work force, where employees are highly engaged, multi-skilled and process owners.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standards addressed in this case are:

1) Disclosure 406-1 Incidents of discrimination and corrective actions taken

2) Disclosure 407-1 Operations and suppliers in which the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining may be at risk

3) Disclosure 408-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of child labor

4) Disclosure 409-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labor

 

Disclosure 406-1 Incidents of discrimination and corrective actions taken corresponds to:

• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
• Business theme: Non-discrimination
• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
• Business theme: Non-discrimination
• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
• Business theme: Non-discrimination 

Disclosure 407-1 Operations and suppliers in which the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining may be at risk corresponds to:

• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
• Business theme: Freedom of association and collective bargaining

Disclosure 408-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of child labor corresponds to:

• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
• Business theme: Abolition of child labor
• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
• Business theme: Abolition of child labor

Disclosure 409-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labor corresponds to:

• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
• Business theme: Elimination of forced or compulsory labor

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

• Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
• Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
• Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
• Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by P&G, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to P&G: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2017 Global Responsibility Report Walmart identified a range of material issues, such as supporting small and local farmers, scaling clean, affordable, renewable energy, providing better product information to customers, investing in communities. Among these, addressing human trafficking in seafood and other supply chains stands out as a key material issue for Walmart.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups Walmart engages with:

Stakeholder Group

Customers

Associates

Suppliers

Advisory councils

Community leaders

Grantees

NGOs

Government leaders

Investors

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics Walmart engaged with its stakeholders through dialogues, working sessions and surveys, which included interviews and a 1,750-respondent survey.

What actions were taken by Walmart to address human trafficking in seafood and other supply chains?

In its 2017 Global Responsibility Report Walmart reports that it took the following actions for addressing human trafficking in seafood and other supply chains:

• Promoting responsible recruitment practices
• In FY2017, Walmart joined the Leadership Group for Responsible Recruitment, and will continue working with other stakeholders to promote responsible recruitment practices in the global supply chain. Walmart is also a member of the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF), which announced a resolution in January 2016 to address forced labour as an industry priority. The CGF brings together over 400 retailers, manufacturers and service providers in the consumer goods industry to create positive change across the retail industry. Walmart also participates in CGF’s Social Sustainability Committee, which works to drive global collaboration in identifying and tackling key social sustainability issues for the industry.

• Developing a training marketplace
• Asda, Walmart’s business in the UK, supports Stronger Together, a multistakeholder initiative that aims to reduce the risk of human trafficking, forced labour and other hidden third-party exploitation of workers in the supply chains of UK companies. Stronger Together provides downloadable resources for employers, labour providers, workers and worker representatives.

• Promoting compliance with labour standards
• Walmart participates in the Seafood Task Force, an initiative established by a group of seafood processors, feed producers, buyers, retailers, government representatives and nongovernmental organisations collaborating to address issues concerning labour conditions and illegal fishing in Thai seafood supply chains. The group’s board of directors includes a representative from Walmart’s Responsible Sourcing organisation. 


• Investing in innovation and tools
• The Walmart Foundation has been awarding, over the past years, grants to International Justice Mission (IJM) and Issara Institute to develop a comprehensive set of data, and analytics and innovative tools to assess the nature and prevalence of forced labour and trafficking in the Thai seafood sector. In FY2017, a new $2 million, two-year grant from the Walmart Foundation helped IJM apply casework and criminal analytics to end impunity for traffickers in the Thai fishing industry. The Walmart Foundation grant to Issara Institute is also helping it to use analytics, technology and collaborations to reduce the risk of slavery across global supply chains, by elevating worker voice though education and access to hotlines. Additionally, the Walmart Foundation awarded $2 million to Polaris Project, a nonprofit organisation that works to disrupt human trafficking by equipping key stakeholders and communities with tools to identify, map and eliminate trafficking networks. Polaris is working with Consejo Ciudadano, a Mexican nonprofit organisation operating a crisis hotline, to be better able to track and respond to reports of trafficking.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standard addressed in this case is: Disclosure 409-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labor

 

Disclosure 409-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labor corresponds to:

• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
• Business theme: Elimination of forced or compulsory labor

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

• Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
• Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
• Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
• Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by Walmart, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) http://www.fbrh.co.uk/en/global-reporting-initiative-gri-g4-guidelines-download-page

3) https://g4.globalreporting.org/Pages/default.aspx

4) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to Walmart: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2018 Corporate Responsibility Report Target identified a range of material issues, such as diversity & inclusion, product safety, community development, responsible resource use, waste management. Among these, preventing forced labour in its supply chains stands out as a key material issue for Target.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards              

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups Target engages with:

Stakeholder Group	Method of engagement
Civil Society Organisations	·      Interactions through community partnerships and volunteerism ·      Participation in conferences and forums ·      Partnerships to advance mutual agendas ·      Select topical engagement ·      Strategic partnerships and consultation on material issues
Guests	·      A Bullseye View website ·      Face-to-face interactions in stores ·      Focus groups ·      Guest Services direct interactions ·      In-store marketing ·      Online polling ·      Receipt-to-online guest satisfaction surveys ·      Social media monitoring and engagement ·      Target Red
Investors	·      Annual meeting of shareholders ·      Financial community meeting ·      Quarterly earnings conference calls ·      Regular calls and in-person meetings
Policy Makers & Influencers	·      Legislative meetings, formal hearings and one-on-one meetings ·      Policy engagement and advocacy ·      Trade associations and policy-based organisations engagement
Team Members	·      Citizens at Target (nonpartisan platform for civic engagement) ·      Confidential annual team member survey ·      Daily team member email ·      Executive leadership emails and videos ·      Focus groups and listening sessions ·      Human resources communications ·      Inclusion acumen ·      Integrity Hotline ·      Volunteerism
Vendors	All vendors: ·      Annual meetings ·      External partner website ·      Trainings and workshops ·      Vendor Code of Conduct Owned-brand vendors: ·      Annual assessment ·      Annual owned-brand vendor meeting ·      Standards of Vendor Engagement (SOVE)

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics Target worked closely with internal working groups to prioritise the environmental and social topics of concern and also carried out a survey among external stakeholders, to hear their feedback and expectations.

What actions were taken by Target to prevent forced labour in its supply chains?

In its 2018 Corporate Responsibility Report Target reports that it took the following actions for preventing forced labour in its supply chains:

• Adopting a Resolution on Forced Labour
• Target’s CEO Brian Cornell sits on the Board of Directors of the Consumer Goods Forum, and Target has adopted the organisation’s Resolution on Forced Labour. The resolution is the first industry commitment of its kind and contains the adoption of three key principles: that every worker should have freedom of movement, that no worker should pay for a job, and that no worker should be indebted or coerced to work.

• Developing policies to protect workers in supply chains
• Target has developed policies for its suppliers to protect foreign contract workers in its supply chain. Target seeks to set clear expectations for suppliers and lay out procedures, standards and verification mechanisms that will support the adoption of the Employer Pays Principle.

• Promoting responsible recruitment
• In 2017, Target joined the Responsible Labour Initiative’s Steering Committee, to continue to develop cross-industry approaches for advancing labour practices, especially regarding responsible recruitment and the protection of foreign migrant workers.

• Preventing human trafficking
• In 2017, Target launched a pilot programme to prevent human trafficking in Northern India. Workers from eight factories and 10 communities participated in a survey that informed both digital informational messaging and local non-profit partners’ educational programmes. By carrying out awareness programming prior to migration, Target hopes to help address the needs of community members and reduce the likelihood of trafficking. In addition, Target entered into a partnership with the International Justice Mission (IJM), to implement the group’s Safe Migration Programme and Grassroots Prevention Campaign in India. These programmes aim to prevent labour trafficking and support trafficking survivors by engaging with vulnerable communities and local authorities.

• Monitoring child labour risks
• All handwoven rugs produced for Target in India are certified by GoodWeave, as child labour free. In 2017, Target continued partnering with GoodWeave to further develop a technology platform that will enable end-to-end supply chain mapping and monitoring for child labour risks in Target’s supply chain in North India.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standard addressed in this case is:

Disclosure 409-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labor

 

Disclosure 409-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labor corresponds to:

• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
• Business theme: Elimination of forced or compulsory labor

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

• Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
• Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
• Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
• Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by Target, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to Target: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.