Detecting and Remediating Modern Slavery in Supply Chains:A Targeted Audit Approach

This paper investigates modern slavery detection and remediation. Action research has been conducted in the textiles and fashion industry, with the primary engagement involving a multi-billion pound (GBP) turnover company and their modern slavery investigation at a high-risk supplier in South East Asia. This paper responds to calls from the literature to investigate the modern slavery detection process and provides empirical evidence involving collaboration with a large multinational NGO and another of the audited supplier’s customers. Findings are presented from a first-hand account of the detection process and suggest that a targeted audit is more likely to identify key indicators of modern slavery. This type of audit includes investigating the end-to-end recruitment process by using a parallel structure of management and worker interviews and documentation review. Evidence is also provided of the company’s remediation process, which includes partnering with a local NGO to empower workers and collaboratively develop suppliers

Horizontal Collaboration in Response to Modern Slavery Legislation:An Action Research Project

Purpose: To investigate how horizontal collaboration aids organisations in responding to modern slavery legislation and in gaining a socially sustainable competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach: Action research has been conducted in the textiles & fashion industry and a relational perspective adopted to interpret five collaborative initiatives taken to tackle modern slavery (e.g. joint training and supplier audits). The primary engagement has been with a multi-billion pound turnover company and its collaborations with 35 brands/retailers. A Non-Government Organisation (NGO) and a trade body have also participated. Findings: Successful horizontal collaboration is dependent on both relational capital and effective (formal and informal) governance mechanisms. In collaborating, firms have generated relational rents and reduced costs creating a socially sustainable competitive advantage, as suggested by the relational perspective. Yet limits to horizontal collaboration also exist. Research limitations/implications: The focus is on one industry only, hence there is scope to extend the study to other industries or forms of collaboration taking place across industries. Practical implications: Successful horizontal collaborative relationships rely on actors having a similar mind-set and being able to decouple the commercial and sustainability agendas, especially when direct competitors are involved. Further, working with non-business actors can facilitate collaboration and provide knowledge and resources important for overcoming the uncertainty that is manifest when responding to new legislation. Social implications: Social sustainability improvements aim to enhance ethical trade and benefit vulnerable workers. Originality/value: Prior literature has focused on vertical collaboration with few prior studies of horizontal collaboration, particularly in a socially sustainable supply chain context. Moreover, there has been limited research into modern slavery from a supply chain perspective. Both successful and unsuccessful initiatives are studied, providing insights into (in)effective collaboration

Detrital stoichiometry as a critical nexus for the effects of streamwater nutrients on leaf litter breakdown rates

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations are elevated in many freshwater systems, stimulating breakdown rates of terrestrially derived plant litter; however, the relative importance of N and P in driving litter breakdown via microbial and detritivore processing are not fully understood. Here, we determined breakdown rates of two litter species, Acer rubrum (maple) and Rhododendron maximum (rhododendron), before (PRE) and during two years (YR1, YR2) of experimental N and P additions to five streams, and quantified the relative importance of hypothesized factors contributing to breakdown. Treatment streams received a gradient of P additions (low to high soluble reactive phosphorus [SRP]; ~10–85 μg/L) crossed with a gradient of N additions (high to low dissolved inorganic nitrogen [DIN]; ~472–96 μg/L) to achieve target molar N:P ratios ranging from 128 to 2. Litter breakdown rates increased above pre‐treatment levels by an average of 1.1–2.2× for maple, and 2.7–4.9× for rhododendron in YR1 and YR2. We used path analysis to compare fungal biomass, shredder biomass, litter stoichiometry (nutrient content as C:N or C:P), discharge, and streamwater temperature as predictors of breakdown rates and compared models containing streamwater N, P or N + P and litter C:N or C:P using model selection criteria. Litter breakdown rates were predicted equally with either streamwater N or P (R2 = 0.57). In models with N or P, fungal biomass, litter stoichiometry, discharge, and shredder biomass predicted breakdown rates; litter stoichiometry and fungal biomass were most important for model fit. However, N and P effects may have occurred via subtly different pathways. Litter N content increased with fungal biomass (N‐driven effects) and litter P content increased with streamwater P availability (P‐driven effects), presumably via P storage in fungal biomass. In either case, the effects of N and P through these pathways were associated with higher shredder biomass and breakdown rates. Our results suggest that N and P stimulate litter breakdown rates via mechanisms in which litter stoichiometry is an important nexus for associated microbial and detritivore effects

Low-to-moderate nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations accelerate microbially driven litter breakdown rates

Particulate organic matter (POM) processing is an important driver of aquatic ecosystem productivity that is sensitive to nutrient enrichment and drives ecosystem carbon (C) loss. Although studies of single concentrations of nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P) have shown effects at relatively low concentrations, responses of litter breakdown rates along gradients of low‐to‐moderate N and P concentrations are needed to establish likely interdependent effects of dual N and P enrichment on baseline activity in stream ecosystems. We established 25 combinations of dissolved inorganic N (DIN; 55–545 μg/L) and soluble reactive P (SRP; 4–86 μg/L) concentrations with corresponding N:P molar ratios of 2–127 in experimental stream channels. We excluded macroinvertebrates, focusing on microbially driven breakdown of maple (Acer rubrum L.) and rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum L.) leaf litter. Breakdown rates, k, per day (d−1) and per degree‐day (dd−1), increased by up to 6× for maple and 12× for rhododendron over our N and P enrichment gradient compared to rates at low ambient N and P concentrations. The best models of k (d−1 and dd−1) included litter species identity and N and P concentrations; there was evidence for both additive and interactive effects of N and P. Models explaining variation in k dd−1 were supported by N and P for both maple and rhododendron ( = 0.67 and 0.33, respectively). Residuals in the relationship between k dd−1 and N concentration were largely explained by P, but residuals for k dd−1 and P concentration were less adequately explained by N. Breakdown rates were more closely related to nutrient concentrations than variables associated with measurements of two mechanistic parameters associated with C loss (fungal biomass and microbial respiration rate). We also determined the effects of nutrient addition on litter C : nutrient stoichiometry and found reductions in litter C:N and C:P along our experimental nutrient gradient. Our results indicate that microbially driven litter processing rates increase across low‐to‐moderate nutrient gradients that are now common throughout human‐modified landscapes

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

Background: Many patients with COVID-19 have been treated with plasma containing anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of convalescent plasma therapy in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19. Methods: This randomised, controlled, open-label, platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19 Therapy [RECOVERY]) is assessing several possible treatments in patients hospitalised with COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 177 NHS hospitals from across the UK. Eligible and consenting patients were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive either usual care alone (usual care group) or usual care plus high-titre convalescent plasma (convalescent plasma group). The primary outcome was 28-day mortality, analysed on an intention-to-treat basis. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936. Findings: Between May 28, 2020, and Jan 15, 2021, 11558 (71%) of 16287 patients enrolled in RECOVERY were eligible to receive convalescent plasma and were assigned to either the convalescent plasma group or the usual care group. There was no significant difference in 28-day mortality between the two groups: 1399 (24%) of 5795 patients in the convalescent plasma group and 1408 (24%) of 5763 patients in the usual care group died within 28 days (rate ratio 1·00, 95% CI 0·93–1·07; p=0·95). The 28-day mortality rate ratio was similar in all prespecified subgroups of patients, including in those patients without detectable SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at randomisation. Allocation to convalescent plasma had no significant effect on the proportion of patients discharged from hospital within 28 days (3832 [66%] patients in the convalescent plasma group vs 3822 [66%] patients in the usual care group; rate ratio 0·99, 95% CI 0·94–1·03; p=0·57). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at randomisation, there was no significant difference in the proportion of patients meeting the composite endpoint of progression to invasive mechanical ventilation or death (1568 [29%] of 5493 patients in the convalescent plasma group vs 1568 [29%] of 5448 patients in the usual care group; rate ratio 0·99, 95% CI 0·93–1·05; p=0·79). Interpretation: In patients hospitalised with COVID-19, high-titre convalescent plasma did not improve survival or other prespecified clinical outcomes. Funding: UK Research and Innovation (Medical Research Council) and National Institute of Health Research

Reshoring and modern slavery in the supply chain:case study evidence and action research in the textiles and fashion industry

Manufacturing and sourcing location decisions in the textiles and fashion industry are complex, e.g. involving the trade-off between cost and lead time considerations. With this in mind, firms are looking to reshore and move manufacturing back to their domestic location. The sustainability agenda is adding to this complexity, with different locations having different implications for transparency and the risk of social problems. Modern slavery is an important global social issue, which is affecting the industry given that the growing demand for cheap, fast fashion can lead to worker exploitation. This thesis focuses on these two current issues, reshoring and modern slavery and presents three papers. The first paper focusses on reshoring and the remaining two papers investigate the phenomenon of modern slavery. The reshoring paper presents a single case study and extends the literature on reshoring that has largely focused on why firms reshore to provide greater understanding of how they can go about implementing the decision to reshore. The paper uses a two-stage approach (systematic literature review and case study evidence) and presents a conceptual framework that provides a structure to consider not only the factors influencing the decision to reshore but also some of the considerations needed to implement the reshoring decision. Further, a contingency perspective is adopted as several of the factors that affect the reshoring process, both in terms of whether a decision to reshore is taken and how implementation is approached, are context specific. The two modern slavery papers are based on an action research project. The primary engagement is with Fashion and Sports Co. (a multi £billion turnover company), to understand how brands and retailers are tackling modern slavery within the textiles and fashion industry. Research into modern slavery from a supply chain perspective is however limited and this thesis contributes to filling the gap. Paper 2 uses relational theory to investigate how brands and retailers are responding to modern slavery legislation. Empirical evidence is used to understand how competing buyers collaborate with one another as previous research has focused on vertical collaboration between buyers and their suppliers, particularly in a socially sustainable supply chain context. The research focusses on five collaborative initiatives taken to tackle modern slavery (e.g. joint training) used by Fashion and Sports Co, along with its horizontal collaboration with 35 other brands/retailers. The study advances knowledge on the creation of socially sustainable competitive advantage (e.g. cost savings, knowledge sharing and enhanced reputation) through horizontal collaboration. Successful horizontal collaboration is dependent on both relational capital (e.g. trust and commitment) and effective (formal and informal) governance mechanisms (e.g. legislation and the involvement of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and trade bodies). Further, working with non-business actors can facilitate collaboration and provide knowledge and resources important for overcoming uncertainty when responding to new legislation. Paper 3 focusses on modern slavery detection and remediation. Prior literature has highlighted the shortcomings of supply chain auditing and questioned the suitability of this approach for detecting modern slavery. This paper uses action research with Fashion and Sports Co. to investigate how they are detecting modern slavery at a high-risk supplier in South East Asia, in collaboration with a large multinational NGO and another of the supplier’s key customers. The study suggests that a more targeted audit can identify key indicators of modern slavery. This type of audit includes investigating the end-to–end recruitment process by using a parallel structure of management and worker interviews and documentation review. The research also investigates the ongoing remediation process involving a local NGO

Lighting up the dark side of the UK fashion industry

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