This statement sets out the steps taken by Smithers-Oasis Europe Limited T/A OASIS FLORAL PRODUCTS, company registration number 1542218 and its subsidiaries pursuant to section 54, Part 5 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (Act).

 

STRUCTURE & SUPPLY CHAINS

Oasis Floral Products is the leading manufacturer and marketeer of floral foam, florists sundries and post harvest products in Europe, employing over 380 employees throughout our divisions in the UK & Europe.

We sell over 600 in-house manufactured products (of which purchased components are contained within) and over 4000 bought in sundry products which are sourced either directly from manufacturers or from suppliers.

The majority of our supplier base is in the UK, with some in Europe and then the remaining proportion of our Suppliers are based overseas.

As a business we pride ourselves on acting fairly and ethically.

Our reputation is built upon how we conduct our business, the values of our Colleagues and the integrity of our Business Partners.

 

POLICIES ON MODERN SLAVERY & DUE DILLIGENCE

At Oasis Floral Products, we recognise our responsibility in ensuring sound social and environmental practices in our manufacturing plants, offices, warehouses and within our supply chain. 

We are committed to eradicating modern slavery and human trafficking in any part of our business and supply chain.

The subsidiaries of Smithers-Oasis Europe Limited operate only in the UK and Europe and we abide by all employment laws including age and eligibility to work verifications.  We have sound diversity and inclusion policies.

As such, we believe that we are at low risk of modern slavery in our employee base.

Our internal employee standards and policies are consistent with the requirements of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation’s core labour standards.

Our ethics code is set out in a number of specific policies on key social and ethical issues, for example anti-bribery and corruption, harassment and bullying, as well as whistleblowing.

These outline the standards and behaviours that we expect from all stakeholders that we engage with.

All employees and stakeholders are encouraged to identify and report any potential breaches of our policies either through established internal procedures or through an independent whistleblowing hotline.

 

RISK ASSESSMENT & MEASURING EFFECTIVENESS

Due to the nature of our operations, we engage with a large number of suppliers at both National, European and International level. 

However, the majority of our expenditure is with a relatively small number of suppliers who are based in the UK & Europe; with a lesser proportion of expenditure with our International Supplier Base.

We want to work with the right suppliers who not only meet our quality standards but also share our values and treat their obligations towards modern slavery and human trafficking with the same importance as we do.

We are reviewing, with a view to revising our commercial procurement policies and supplier agreements to ensure that all our contracts contain appropriate clauses placing obligations in relation to the prevention of modern slavery and human trafficking on our suppliers.

Where we believe we could potentially be at risk, with a small number of suppliers based Internationally, we employ agents to inspect factories during production cycles to ensure that policies and procedures and relevant legal requirements of minimum standards are adhered to.

 

TRAINING FOR STAFF

We plan to develop appropriate ethics training for all employees and new starters, as part of our people development programme and will update all relevant policies alongside this.  This will be included in our Onboarding procedures which sit within our QMS system as the UK operations have ISO 9001 : 2015 certification.

 

ON-GOING COMMITMENT

Managing the risks around all forms of Modern Slavery & Human Rights is an iterative process and carries on-going risk.

We are committed to continuously reviewing and improving the effectiveness of this policy to prevent modern slavery and human trafficking throughout our operations and supply chain.

This statement has been reviewed and approved by the Senior Management Team in October 2019 and a copy of it has been signed by Stephen K Short, MD & VP Northern European & Mediterranean Operations for Smithers-Oasis.