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TRANSFORMING TRANSFORMING TRANSFORMING
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT FY 2023
Human Rights
Given the nature of our industry, human rights
assume great significance. We are sensitive to the
need for following high standards of human rights
within our business and are dedicated to
safeguarding these rights throughout our value
chain. Human dignity and the dignity of work is well
aligned with our core values and central to the
vision. Vedanta’s reputation and relationships with
employees, local communities, suppliers,
customers, investors, governments, is directly
influenced by our human rights actions.
Violations of human rights can lead to reputational
damage, legal disputes, and strained relationships.
On the other hand, when we respect human rights,
uphold the dignity of labor, ensure fair treatment
for our workforce, and provide a safe and secure
working environment, we foster trust, cultivate a
social license to operate, and establish a
foundation for sustainable business practices.
Upholding high values through our Human
Rights Policy and Code of Conduct
Vedanta’s core value of Respect finds reflection in
our approach to human rights. Driven by the
objective of setting an industry benchmark in the
area of human rights, the policy was updated in
2023 and is recognized and applied across the
company. The 2023 update was developed in
consultation with external and internal experts,
reviewed by the Company's HSES and ESG
ManCom's respectively and members of Vedanta's
Senior Management Team, and approved by
Vedanta's Board of Directors. Vedanta
incorporates human rights considerations into its
strategies for social management, environmental
management, health and safety, security, and
human resources. Our policy adheres to the
United Nations Declaration on Human Rights, UN
Guiding Principles of Business and Human Rights
(the Ruggie Principles), Universal Declaration of
Human Rights (UDHR), the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the
International Covenant on Economic, Social, and
Cultural Rights (ICESCR), International Bill of
Rights, and ILO. We report on the potential impact
of our operations on human rights and outline
our methods for recognizing and minimizing
associated risks. In 2023, Vedanta initiated the
revision of our Social Performance Standard,
encompassing human rights prerequisites. This
move facilitates collaboration with our
stakeholders to further advance our commitment
to upholding human rights.Further, we are a
member of the United Nations Global Compact
and abide by its 10 principles.
By articulating our human rights approach in an
inclusive way, the policy also serves as a
guidance on issues pertaining to labour rights
and industrial elations, and aids strategic
decision-making.
Our pursuit of being the gold standard for
workforce-focused policy development does not
end here. We also take cognizance of the Modern
Slavery Act, and have been complying with the
Modern Slavery Act (UK) or MSA since 2016. We
conduct periodic and systematic updates and
audits to ensure that our vendors and supply
chain are entirely free of slave labour. Each of our
vendors and suppliers are mandated to provide a
MSA self-declaration.
Our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics
(COBE) is aligned with all relevant national laws
and regulations. Every year, all employees and
business partners have to give a positive
affirmation that they continue to adhere to the
requirements of COBE. Additionally, COBE is a
mandatory part of our contract agreeements and
our business partners have to abide by the as
well.
Our Supplier Code of Conduct helps ensure that
all third parties, including their employees, agents
and representatives who have a business
relationship with Vedanta, are bound by industry
standards as well as applicable
statutory requirements concerning
business integrity, labour and human
rights, health, safety and environment
Human Rights Training
Annual training programmes are held to
acquaint employees and contractual
workers with our Human Rights policy
and Code of Business Conduct and
Ethics. This is to make our employees
and contractual workers aware of their
rights and responsibilities and ways of
recourse in case of infringement of
rights. The trainings are also aligned
with our guidance notes, which have
Human Rights Due Diligence Process
To minimize the risk of human rights
infringements, we conduct a
company-wide due diligence exercise
bi-annually to systematically identify
potential human rights risks and their
likely fallout.
Tracking and communicating
performance
Remediation of
adverse impacts
COMMUNITIES THE PLANET THE WORKPLACE
been developed in reference to the International
Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance
Standards and International Council on Mining
and Metals (ICMM) guidelines.
81%
People trained on
Human Rights
818
Suppliers Assessed
This exercise covers our own operations, our
value chain and other activities related to our
business. Human Rights due-diligence is an
integral part of our risk assessment process
when acquiring new business relations(of
entities that are part of the Group by virtue of
mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures etc.).
Integrating findings
and potential impacts
Assessment of actual
and potential impacts
(i.e. human rights risk
Our effective
human rights due assessment)
diligence process
Commitment to
Vedanta Human Rights
& Labor Rights Policy
44