Supply Chain Ethics: Exposing Modern Slavery

Do you know where your t-shirt was made? Or who assembled your smartphone?

In an age of convenience, most of us don’t ask. Or if we do, the answers are carefully hidden behind logos, warehouses, and supplier tiers.

But here’s the uncomfortable truth: Over 50 million people globally are trapped in modern slavery in supply chains, often hidden behind the brands we trust and the conveniences we enjoy.. Many of them work for companies you know. And possibly, for the brands you wear, eat, or scroll through every day.

The time to shrug is over.

Modern Slavery Isn’t History. It’s Business.

According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), the number of people in modern slavery has surged by 10 million since 2016, reaching 50 million in 2021. Of those:

• 28 million are in forced labour

• 22 million in forced marriages

• Over 17 million are exploited in private-sector supply chains

This includes garment workers in Bangladesh earning below subsistence wages, cobalt miners in the Congo—including children—digging for electric car batteries, and migrant laborers in construction sectors across the Gulf and Asia.

The painful irony? Many of these industries power the green transition and tech revolution we so proudly celebrate.

modern slavery cases in global supply chains

The Hidden Price of Cheap

Global supply chains are often deliberately opaque. Brands subcontract to factories, which subcontract again, creating layers of plausible deniability.

Yet, in many cases, corporations do know. They just don’t want to know too much.

And the problem isn't only in low-income nations. In 2023, the UK’s Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority uncovered forced labor in British agriculture and construction. In the U.S., the Department of Labor found modern slavery in cleaning services, food processing, and even elder care.

This is not about "bad apples." It's about systemic exploitation enabled by weak oversight, profit pressure, and consumer indifference.

Case Study: Boohoo’s Supply Chain Scandal

In 2020, a bombshell report revealed that garment workers in Leicester, UK, producing for fast-fashion brand Boohoo, were paid as little as £3.50/hour, working in unsafe, pandemic-era conditions.

Public outrage followed. The company lost £1 billion in market value in a week.

This is what happens when ethics become a footnote to growth.

And yet, Boohoo’s story is not unique. It’s just one of the few that made the headlines.

Is Regulation Enough to End Modern Slavery in Supply Chains?

Yes—but slowly.

• The UK Modern Slavery Act (2015) requires annual supply chain disclosures—but lacks teeth.

• The U.S. Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (2021) bans goods from China’s Xinjiang region unless companies prove no forced labor was used.

• In Germany and the EU, new laws like the Lieferkettengesetz and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) impose legal obligations for ethical sourcing.

Yet enforcement remains patchy. Loopholes remain. And only 1 in 3 companies globally have mapped their full supply chains beyond Tier 1.

So, What Can Be Done?

If you're a business leader, here’s your ethical to-do list:

1. Map your full supply chain—beyond Tier 1. Know your sources.

2. Conduct independent audits—don’t just rely on supplier self-assessments.

3. Embed human rights due diligence into procurement policies.

4. Use blockchain and traceability tech to increase transparency.

5. Partner with NGOs and ethical certifiers to build accountability.

If you’re a consumer, do more than click “add to cart”:

• Support ethical brands.

• Ask questions on social media.

• Vote with your wallet.

Because silence is complicity.