Question: Does the investor disclose in its modern slavery statement active engagement with investee companies on their (investee companies’) modern slavery/ labour exploitation/ human trafficking risks in value chains and business relationships?
Answer:
Yes
15357983
Walk Free
2021
Unverified

pg. 4

“For public markets, the firm’s proprietary ESG tools are of particular note. Our ESG Dashboard includes our proprietary Quantitative ESG (“QESG”) Score and identifies stocks with positive ESG characteristics and/or stocks demonstrating positive ESG change. The QESG score captures how a company manages its ESG risks and whether it is improving. This includes information on human rights issues. The Portfolio Snapshot allows us to observe the aggregate ESG risks across our portfolios relative to their benchmarks. It also examines ESG ratings and controversies and identifies contingent risks. Our portfolio managers use this tool to evaluate a strategy’s ESG performance over time. It also provides insights into engagement and the progress made, and our voting choices relative to the benchmark. Through these tools, along with additional EOS engagement information, the public-equities and fixed-income teams have access to third-party ESG data, as well as insights on engagement carried out by EOS with investee companies and the broader investable universe. These sources are a valuable input to the investment process, as well as to the ongoing monitoring of and engagement with companies.”

“Through EOS – one of the largest stewardship resources of any fund manager in the world – we engage companies on strategic and material ESG concerns to promote investors’ long-term performance and fiduciary interests. EOS offers a shared service model, engaging on behalf of both FHL and Modern Slavery June 2022 3 third-party clients.”

Pg. 7

“Our engagement is focused on commitment to the principles of the Modern Slavery Act and the application of those principles in policies, controls and processes across companies’ workforces and supply chains. In our capacity as an investor in large operational businesses with their own executive management teams, we engage with boards, management, operational teams and contractors to raise awareness, challenge processes and interrogate controls. As an investor in smaller assets with fully (or largely) contracted workforces, we work with our contractors to ensure sufficient awareness, to enshrine commitments to not rely on forced or compulsory labour and ensure adequate labour standards and working conditions in corporate policies dealing with health and safety, inclusion and diversity and supply chain management and to undertake supplementary due diligence on suppliers where necessary.”

Manali Rana.....2023-06-15 08:59:40 UTC