CSIRO Modern Slavery 
Statement 2022 

 Published December 2022



Contents
Message from our Chief Operating Officer..................................................................................3

Approval by the CSIRO Board............................................................................................................3Introduction.................................................................................................................................................4Consultation in the development of this Statement..................................................................5Our organisation........................................................................................................................................6Our purpose........................................................................................................................................................................6Identification of the reporting entity...............................................................................................................................6Governance ........................................................................................................................................................................7Our operations ...................................................................................................................................................................8Our sites..............................................................................................................................................................................9Our people........................................................................................................................................................................10Our supply chain...............................................................................................................................................................10Assessing and addressing risk in our operations and supply chains .............................12Our risk assessment methodology..................................................................................................................................12Modern slavery risk in our operations ...........................................................................................................................13Modern slavery risk in our supply chain.........................................................................................................................15Assessing the effectiveness of our actions.................................................................................17Mandatory Critera Index.......................................................................................................................19References..................................................................................................................................................20
2 CSIRO Modern Slavery Statement 2022



Message from our 
Chief Operating Officer 

For over 100 years, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) has been 
improving the lives of people everywhere with our science. We have advanced Australia with a range of 
inventions and innovations that have had significant positive impact on the lives of people around the world. 
We continue to have positive impact, not only through our science, but also through our business practices. 

Modern slavery is a global humanitarian issue that touches all businesses and individuals through 
purchasing decisions and practices. It is a systemic issue that occurs not only abroad, but also in 
Australia. We recognise that all entities must play their part and CSIRO is committed to the prevention 
of slavery in all its forms and to address the risks inherent in our operations and supply chain.

We have made some good inroads since publishing our first modern slavery statement, and this new statement reflects 
our commitment to continually improve our practices and to address and respect human rights across our business.

Tom Munyard
CSIRO Chief Operating Officer
December 2022

Approval by the CSIRO Board

This Modern Slavery Statement (Statement) sets out the CSIRO’s actions to meet reporting obligations 
under the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth) (the Act) for the period 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2022. 

This Statement has been approved by the CSIRO Board and signed by 
Ms Kathryn Fagg AO, Chair of the CSIRO Board on 9 December 20221.

Signature:



Introduction

At CSIRO, we continue our commitment to prevent modern slavery2 
and to continually improve our efforts to assess and address 
modern slavery risks in our operations and supply chains.

This Statement outlines our progress, and an improved 
understanding of risks and actions undertaken during 
the reporting period. This Statement also describes 
our efforts to monitor the effectiveness of our actions 
and sets out our plans for the coming year. 

Addressing modern slavery reflects our wider approach to 
sustainability and actions to address our potential impacts 
to people and planet. This Statement complements our 
Annual Report 20223 and Sustainability Report 20224, 
further expanding on our performance reporting. 



Consultation in the development 
of this Statement

This section details content to satisfy mandatory criteria 1(f) under section 
16 of the Act, including a description of the process of consultation in the 
development of the Statement with any entities owned or controlled. 

To prepare this Statement, we consulted a range of internal 
stakeholders, including entities owned and controlled 
by CSIRO. The consultation processes included:

• An organisation-wide survey to gauge the level of 
engagement, knowledge, and/or actions taken to 
understand or address modern slavery risks.
• Interviews with internal stakeholders across business 
areas with potential modern slavery risk factors or 
who play a role in risk controls. These interviews were 
conducted to create awareness of modern slavery, 
CSIRO’s reporting obligations under the Act, and to 
capture any relevant risks or actions during the reporting 
period. These stakeholders included representation 
from procurement, facilities management, business 
and information services, information management 
and technology functions, CSIRO Publishing, the 
Research Vessel (RV) Investigator team (marine 
services), the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) 
engagement unit5 and various research departments.
• A review of the Statement’s contents by relevant 
personnel throughout the drafting process by 
senior managers including Finance, Governance, 
Business and Infrastructure Services and Legal.
• Engaging a specialist advisory services firm to conduct 
an independent modern slavery risk assessment, support 
the drafting process, guide consultation, and review 
the Statement against the Commonwealth Guidance for 
reporting entities and mandatory criteria of the Act.




Our organisation

This section details content to satisfy mandatory criteria 1(a) and 1(b) 
under section 16 of the Act, including identification of the reporting 
entity, a description of its structure, operations and supply chains.

Our purpose

CSIRO is Australia’s national science agency and 
innovation catalyst. Our collaborative research 
turns science into solutions to address Australia’s 
greatest challenges including food security and 
quality; health and wellbeing; resilient and valuable 
environments; sustainable energy and resources; 
future industries; and a secure Australia and region.

For over a century, CSIRO has been improving the lives of 
people everywhere with our science. We are one of the 
largest and most diverse scientific research organisations 
in the world. Our research focuses on the biggest 
challenges6 facing our nation. We manage state-of-the‑art 
research facilities, for greater collaboration and the 
development of new technologies to support Australia. 

We have advanced Australia with a range of inventions 
and innovations that have had significant positive impacts 
on the lives of people around the world. Some of these 
include fast WiFi, the Hendra Virus vaccine, extended 
wear contact lenses and the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet. 

We describe our purpose as ‘Solving the greatest 
challenges through innovative science and technology’. 

We have three primary objectives7 to 
help us deliver on our purpose:

1. Conduct and encourage the translation of Australia’s 
world-class scientific research into impact. 
2. Create and manage Australia’s national laboratories. 
3. Stimulate innovation for Australian 
industry, academia and government.


Identification of the reporting entity

CSIRO is an Australian Government statutory authority, 
with a Board and Chief Executive. We are constituted by 
and operate under the provisions of the Science and Industry 
Research Act 1949 (SIR Act), which sets out our functions and 
powers, as well as those of the Federal Minister for Industry 
and Science (Minister), our Board and Chief Executive. 

CSIRO (ABN 41 687 119 230) meets the reporting 
threshold of the Act. We have several owned and 
controlled entities set out in Table 1, that contribute 
to the delivery of our purpose, vision and objectives. 
As indicated, these entities do not meet the reporting 
threshold set out by the Act. In addition, they do not 
carry out operations or engage personnel separate 
from CSIRO. Some operate as trusts managed by CSIRO 
subsidiaries for the purpose of investment and funding.

Table 1: Entities owned or controlled by CSIRO 

ENTITY

ABN

REPORTING 
ENTITY8 

The Science and Industry 
Endowment Fund (SIEF)

30 996 538 219

No

National ICT Australia 
(NICTA)

62 102 206 173

No

CSIRO Financial Services 
Pty Limited manager of 
The Innovation Fund9 

82 609 904 289

No

The CSIRO Chile Research 
Foundation (Fundación)

n/a

No

The CSIRO US Office

n/a

No







Governance 

The governance, performance and accountability 
requirements of our operations, including the use 
and management of public resources, are set out in 
the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability 
Act 2013 (PGPA Act) and related rules, in so far as 
they apply to corporate Commonwealth entities. 

At CSIRO, our Director of Finance prepares the modern 
slavery statement, and presents to our Chief Operating 
Officer (COO), the Executive Team and the Board 
for approval. Our COO is a member of the CSIRO 
Sustainability Steering Committee, and Executive sponsor 
of the CSIRO Sustainability Strategy 2020–203010.

During the reporting period, CSIRO established 
a Sustainable Procurement Working Group 
with representation from the health and safety, 
procurement, legal, commercial and sustainability 
functions. The working group supports delivery of 
the Sustainable Procurement Implementation Plan 
(SPIP), a key initiative of our Sustainability Strategy. 
The SPIP includes a range of initiatives directly relevant 
to modern slavery governance and risk mitigation and 
is described in more detail later in this Statement. 



Research

Cooperative Research Centres

Research Development Corporations

Publicly Funded Research Agencies

Universities

We partner with research institutions through 
co‑location, co-publication and collaborative 
research to boost innovation and ensure the best 
available research is used to solve the greatest 
challenges and deliver outcomes for Australia 
and the world.

Government

Local councils

State

Federal

International

We share our research activities and provide 
scientific information and advice to inform policy 
development and program implementation.

Industry

Large corporations

Small to medium-sized enterprises

Accelerator and innovation funds

Start-ups

Venture capital

We partner with industry to co‑create 
commercialisation outcomes that 
deliver the impact and create 
economic value for the nation. 

Community

Outreach programs

STEM education

Indigenous engagement

We deliver learning experiences for students, 
teachers and the community to equip Australians 
with the knowledge they need to enter the 
workforce and increase their science, technology, 
engineering and mathematics skills.

Our operations 

The majority of our business activity is centred on scientific 
research and development11 spanning astronomy and space, 
animals and plants, natural environments, farming and food 
production, health and medical, information technology, 
renewable energy, and mining and manufacturing. 

Our research and development activities include:

• collaboration and cooperation with Australian 
governments, national and international 
universities, and research institutions
• collaboration with industry and 
with businesses of all sizes 
• funding and programs12, and 
• education and scholarship opportunities.13 


Some of our other activities include:

• managing Australia’s national research collections 
and facilities14, including the Australian Centre for 
Disease Preparedness, the Pawsey Supercomputing 
Centre, and the Atlas of Living Australia
• publishing and distributing physical and 
digital journals, books and magazines centred 
on scientific and educational content
• intellectual property and proprietary research 
and tool ownership including generating 
patent ownership and revenue
• generating and funding ‘spin-out’ companies 
to commercialise our research activities 
such as BARLEYmaxTM and FutureFeed15
• assigning funding and establishing partnerships 
on behalf of The Science and Industry Endowment 
Fund (SIEF) and the SME Connect program16
• operating our Marine National Facility’s RV Investigator, 
supporting Australia’s atmospheric, oceanographic, 
biological and geoscience research from the 
tropical north to the Antarctic ice-edge17
• supporting our core business activities through 
corporate functions including administration, 
facility management, finance, communications and 
marketing, information technology services, human 
resources, health and safety, legal, commercial 
and global, and sustainability services




Our sites

As at 30 June 2022, we operated 50 sites across Australia 
and 3 sites overseas. Our people also access desks 
or small areas of land for research purposes in 29 
minor locations, including Vietnam and Singapore.



Our people

As of 30 June 2022, we had 5,672 directly employed 
people. Over 60 per cent, are classified within the research 
function. Our diverse workforce of people come from more 
than 140 countries, ranging from trainees and apprentices 
to emeritus researchers and support people. This diversity 
of minds and lived experiences breeds innovation and is 
critical to overcoming the challenges we need to tackle.

Our supply chain

CSIRO procures a range of products and services to 
support our main activities. We source a broad array of 
procurements from construction services to scientific 
equipment to energy, to name a few. In line with the Senate 
Order for Entity Contracts, CSIRO is required to publish 
biannually on its website a list of all current contracts 
with a value of $100,000 or more.18 We also publish an 
Annual Procurement Plan (APP)19 on AusTender, which 
provides information on significant procurements that 
CSIRO plans to undertake over the coming 12 months. The 
APP includes a concise strategic procurement outlook 
statement that broadly sets out any key major or strategic 
initiatives from which CSIRO expects procurements to arise. 

Our top categories, by percentage of total spend, include:

• corporate property service management
• laboratory supplies
• materials supplies and services
• contractors - temporary positions and 
research and development personnel
• computer hardware, software and other
• seminar and conference fees, training costs
• chartered aircraft and boats, travel expenses
• health safety environment items
• motor vehicle expenses, and
• agricultural supplies.


For our invoiced spend, the vast majority of our direct 
(tier 1) suppliers are Australian businesses. At present we 
do not compulsorily collect the country of origin for our 
goods purchased, however we are working to improve 
the collection of supply chain data.20 We aim to improve 
our understanding of geographic risks as we develop 
more comprehensive systems to improve transparency 
and monitor risk in our supply chains. Further information 
about our supply chains is described later in this statement. 

FemaleMaleNon-binary/prefer not say

.%%
.%
%
.%
.%
.%
Permanent 
(ongoing)
Part timeTemporary 
(non-ongoing) 
Full timeTemporary 
(non-ongoing) 
Part timePermanent 
(ongoing) 
Full time

Assessing and addressing 
risk in our operations and 
supply chains 

Our risk assessment methodology

This year, we engaged a specialist advisory services 
firm to conduct an independent risk assessment of 
our operations and supply chain to identify modern 
slavery risks. Our approach to risk assessment reflects 
that modern slavery risk is risk to people, not entity 
or business risk, although these may intersect. 

The risk assessment methodology included 
the following steps:

• Quantitatively analyse our spend data for both 
operations and supply chain,21 which considered 
risk based on category, industry, geography, and 
potential intersections with vulnerable people.22
• Qualitatively reviewing the nature of our 
operational activities for exposure to worker 
vulnerability and industries exposed to 
modern slavery risk in each geography. 
• Conducting internal stakeholder interviews to 
validate findings and check for any additional 
information not found in spend or public data.
• Consideration of CSIRO’s proximity to impact according 
to the cause, contribute, or linked framework set out by 
the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights 
(UNGPs) continuum of involvement23. This considers the 
nature of the relationship and degree of influence, 
to determine the extent of potential involvement. 


12 CSIRO Modern Slavery Statement 2022



Modern slavery risk 
in our operations 

This section details content to partially satisfy 
mandatory criteria 1(c) and 1(d) under section 
16 of the Act. This includes description of risks 
of modern slavery practices specific to CSIRO’s 
operations which includes services conducted 
at our sites, and the actions taken by CSIRO 
to assess and address these risks including 
due diligence and remediation processes. 

The most salient areas of operational risk identified include:

• operations and maintenance of the RV Investigator24
• contracted services such as repairs, maintenance, 
labour hire and outsourced publishing design services
• construction services
• on-site cleaning services
• offshore activities in higher risk geographies 
such as Vietnam and Chile.25


These are areas where our operational activities 
may potentially be linked to, or contribute to a 
risk of modern slavery, per the UNGPs continuum 
of involvement. We have therefore prioritised 
these areas for risk mitigation, considering 
our leverage and ability to influence. 

Our risk assessment determined that our research 
activities and direct employees are considered low risk 
for modern slavery. This is due to our strict onboarding 
and recruitment requirements, relatively low geographic 
risks,26 and a high barrier to entry as most of our people 
are highly trained and specialised. In addition, CSIRO 
undertakes a range of actions to ensure compliance 
with relevant workforce laws and to protect our 
people, including those involved in our research. 

Our policies include: 

• The Ethical Human Research Policy27 which states our 
commitment to upholding the rights of all people 
involved in our research as subjects and participants. 
• The Child Safe Policy28 which states our 
commitment to the safety and wellbeing of 
children and young people involved in our 
activities, research and education programs.
• The CSIRO Code of Conduct29, People Policy30, 
and Health, Safety and Environment Policy31 all 
state commitments to the provision of a safe work 
environment where our people are treated in a safe 
and equitable manner with respect and integrity. 
• As a Commonwealth entity, all of our people are covered 
by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 201332 (PID Act) 
which outlines protection from reprisal should they 
wish to raise concerns as a whistle-blower. The PID Act 
provides a legislative basis for the CSIRO Public Interest 
Disclosure Scheme33 and associated protections.


For our contracted services for repairs and maintenance, 
CSIRO’s robust induction and contractual requirements 
and conditions in relation to personnel also serve to lower 
residual risks.34 These controls include police checks, 
temporary monitored access to sites, transparency of 
rates for technical disciplines and disclosure of cleaning 
staff wages for cleaning contractors. In addition, as 
our facilities and resources include highly specialised 
equipment, maintenance and servicing requires skilled 
contractors. Modern slavery risks are often heightened for 
low-skilled workers. However, given that we use skilled 
contractors, our inherent risks are considered lower.



Risks associated with the RV Investigator

Seafaring and maritime industries carry an increased 
risk of modern slavery. However, during the risk 
assessment process we were able to determine that 
the residual risks associated with the RV Investigator 
are low due to the following factors:

• CSIRO owns the RV Investigator and manages 
the recruitment and contracts of all people 
working on the ship. We contract an external 
provider for the day-to-day management of ship 
operations under strict contract requirements.
• Union representation of crew members 
is at or close to 100%.
• The RV Investigator utilises strict quarantining 
processes for crew safety and cannot onboard 
unregistered or guest passengers for safety reasons.


Due to these factors, we consider the operation of 
the RV Investigator to have lower residual risks than 
the seafaring industry at-large. We aim to address 
any risks associated with the RV Investigator’s port 
and maintenance schedules when these services are 
tendered through procurement processes in the future. 

Cleaning services

Risk mitigation in cleaning services agreements

During the reporting period, our facilities management 
team were able to proactively mitigate some of 
the inherent risks in the cleaning service supply 
arrangements. Some of the risks associated with this 
industry stem from the opacity and sub-contracting 
of services through multiple business layers, which 
make identification and mitigation difficult.35 

Our current process allows for open communication 
between facility managers and the facility contract 
managers. During the reporting period, facility 
managers determined that cleaning people at 
one of our sites were not present during the 
contracted timeframes and raised this with the 
contract managers. As opposed to addressing 
this as a failure to deliver on contracted services, 
the facilities contract managers investigated the 
terms of the ongoing services agreement.

During this investigation, the contract management team 
determined the fee for services and corresponding work 
hours resulted in a discrepancy that may lead to people 
being paid less than the award rate if the correct contracted 
hours were worked. In collaboration with the supplier, 
the contract rates were adjusted to ensure the services 
and quotation at a minimum allowed for award wages to 
be paid for the hours required to undertake the services. 
This also resulted in disclosure of all payments made 
directly to the subcontractor by the principal contractor 
and the rate being paid directly to people undertaking the 
services. In response to the facility managers’ observations, 
CSIRO undertook this additional due diligence to 
ensure workers were not placed under pressure. 

Our facilities management and contracting team 
continue to review the basic costing and expectations 
for site services contracts considering known risks 
and vulnerabilities in the cleaning sector.

Some areas for further review and assessment include:

• Addressing possible risks associated with the 
maintenance of the RV Investigator during 
port and maintenance schedules. 
• Review of outsourced offshore services 
such as design services for publishing.
• Review of construction contracts and activities to 
determine worker vulnerabilities and protections.
• Review of offshore research activities 
in higher-risk geographies.




Modern slavery risk in 
our supply chain

This section details content to partially satisfy 
mandatory criteria 1(c) and 1(d) under section 
16 of the Act. This includes description of risks 
of modern slavery practices specific to CSIRO’s 
supply chains and the actions taken by CSIRO 
to assess and address these risks, including 
due diligence and remediation processes. 

Applying the risk assessment methodology, the most salient 
purchasing categories for modern slavery risk include:

• laboratory supplies
• materials supplies and services
• computer hardware and other computer materials
• health safety environment items, and
• agricultural supplies.


The risks associated with the above purchasing categories 
are largely driven by risks in the manufacturing industry, 
which is estimated by the International Labour Organisation 
to account for 15% of all victims of forced labour.36 
Geographic differences between these risks have not yet 
been calculated due to a lack of data. CSIRO will continue 
to monitor risks where data is available for assessment.

Although CSIRO has likely not caused or contributed 
to these risks, according to the UNGP framework we 
acknowledge that we are directly linked to them through 
our business relationships and will therefore aim to use 
our leverage where possible to mitigate these risks. 

We are largely addressing these risks through 
the establishment of our SPIP. 



Sustainable Procurement 
Implementation Plan (SPIP)

The SPIP has been established in response to the 
key priority actions for sustainable procurement 
outlined in CSIRO’s Sustainability Strategy, namely, to 
understand the environmental and social impacts of 
our purchasing decisions, and to embed the highest 
standards of responsible procurement. As part of 
the Strategy, in 2021 we undertook an independent 
assessment of our activities against the Act, the ISO 
20400:2017 Sustainable Procurement Guidance37, and 
the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human 
Rights, which informed the development of the SPIP. 

The aim of the SPIP is to establish foundational and 
ongoing frameworks for CSIRO to assess and address 
environmental and social risk, with a focus on modern 
slavery alongside other sustainability impacts.

Relevant actions undertaken during the reporting 
period include:

• establishment of a cross-functional Sustainable 
Procurement Working Group responsible 
for the communication and oversight of 
progress of relevant workstreams
• commencing internal discussions for a policy and 
governance framework to outline expectations 
and commitments to address modern slavery 
and human rights across our activities
• developing a draft Supplier Code of Conduct 
that outlines CSIRO’s expectations of suppliers 
including ethical conduct, human and labour 
rights, and mitigation of modern slavery risks
• conducting an independent modern slavery risk 
assessment of operations and supply chain
• reviewing grievance mechanisms to identify 
gaps, and develop a plan for improvement
• development of a draft Sustainability Impact Matrix 
- a procurement tool to identify known sources of 
risk and opportunity, segmented by sustainability 
topic,38 to assist with integrating more sustainable 
choices into tendering and evaluation processes
• drafting more detailed tender questionnaire 
templates based on known risks. 


The activities under the SPIP aim to strengthen CSIRO’s 
governance in relation to modern slavery and other 
risks and establish a strong foundation for continuous 
improvement. The SPIP will serve to practically embed 
an enhanced focus on risks to people across relevant 
business functions through procurement activity. 
The procurement tools will enable more responsible 
purchasing decisions; whilst modern slavery risk will 
be considered as part of our broader approach to 
human rights, and our wider sustainability impacts.39 

Progress under the SPIP will be shared through ongoing 
disclosure in future modern slavery statements.

The impacts of COVID-19 and domestic 
mask production 

CSIRO acknowledges that COVID-19 has had negative 
impacts on people across the globe, including 
workers in supply chains. Workers in personal 
protective equipment (PPE) manufacturing were 
placed under enormous pressure during the peak 
of the pandemic. The global outbreak caused a 
surge in international demand for PPE, with CSIRO 
also increasing its PPE procurement. We recognise 
that there have been increased modern slavery 
risks in the manufacture of face masks in particular, 
due to the high demand, short lead times and 
increased production in high-risk geographies. 

To minimise supply disruption and support 
Australian manufacturing capabilities, CSIRO 
collaborated with the Australian Government and 
local manufacturers to develop and test materials 
and processes needed to produce the masks in 
Australia. Surgical face masks are now being produced 
domestically at a large scale, thereby reducing 
dependence on offshore manufacturing and reducing 
modern slavery risks in this supply chain.40

At CSIRO sites, we are committed to preventing 
the spread of COVID-19 and protecting the health 
of our people through the provision of surgical 
face masks, hand sanitiser and rapid antigen 
tests (RATs). We also support our people through 
working from home where feasible, and suspended 
in‑person activities where necessary, adhering to the 
relevant government guidelines and restrictions. 



Assessing the effectiveness of 
our actions

This section details content to satisfy mandatory criteria 1(e) 
under section 16 of the Act. This includes how CSIRO assesses the 
effectiveness of actions taken to assess and address risks. 

We monitor the effectiveness of our modern 
slavery approach and are committed to continuous 
improvement. To measure the effectiveness of 
our actions, we track our progress against the 
commitments and activities set out in Table 2. 

This includes previous, updated, or newly established 
commitments, with comments and progress noted against 
each. As our approach matures, we aim to further refine our 
systems and processes to continually improve outcomes. 

Table 2: Table of commitments

Commitment

Status

Comment

Governance controls

Explore opportunities for the development of a 
CSIRO Corporate Social Responsibility Statement 
or other relevant policy changes to frame modern 
slavery across the whole of business.

Our original commitment was to develop a corporate social 
responsibility statement. However, to reflect UNGP best practice, 
we have begun to engage internally on the development of a policy 
position focussing on human rights.

Review existing grievance mechanisms considering 
UNGP guidance.

We have initiated a review of available CSIRO contact lines as 
appropriate grievance mechanisms, against the recommendations of 
the UNGP guidance. 

Establish a Sustainable Procurement Working 
Group with oversight of modern slavery risks 
within our goods and services contracts.

The working group will continue to monitor progress of the SPIP and 
review any relevant modern slavery activities.

Define responsibilities for ongoing review of 
modern slavery risks and actions.

CSIRO leadership will confirm ongoing internal responsibilities for 
assessing and addressing modern slavery.

Update contract and purchase order templates 
to include environmental, social and governance 
(ESG) requirements. 

This has been initiated as part of the SPIP.

Risk assessment

Conduct a modern slavery risk assessment for 
CSIRO operations and supply chain. 

This commitment has been amended from the FY20 commitment 
to ‘Assess our third-party arrangements contained within revenue 
contracts.’
The full results of the independent risk assessment have been 
circulated internally during the drafting process of this Statement. 

Define the review schedule for modern slavery 
risk assessments across our operations and 
supply chains.

CSIRO leadership will review the results of the risk assessments and 
determine the ongoing period for risk assessment. 





In progress

Completed

New

Planned








Commitment

Status

Comment

Training

Training relevant workforce in our responsibilities 
and requirements to comply with the Act.

Training may include general awareness raising or be related to 
specific areas of responsibility

Monitoring and mitigation

Review our sustainable procurement capabilities 
and develop an action plan for integrating modern 
slavery risk into procurement processes by the end 
of FY21.

Independent expertise was sought to assess our sustainable 
procurement capabilities (ISO20400) and guide the SPIP in FY21.

Define ‘risk’ clearly within the procurement 
standard and ensure procurers are aware of the 
products and services that constitute ‘high risk’ 
procurements. 

Modern slavery risk is being embedded based on the results of the 
modern slavery risk assessment, through the Sustainability Impact 
Matrix Tool.

Amend procurement procedures, processes and 
standards as required to promote continuous 
improvement.

This commitment is ongoing through the SPIP.

Develop a Supplier Code of Conduct to 
communicate and guide expectations for ethical 
conduct and sustainability.

The Supplier Code of Conduct has been drafted and is undergoing 
internal consultation.

Set sustainable procurement targets for areas of 
modern slavery risk.

As part of the SPIP, where possible, these targets will be specific, 
measurable, attainable, results-oriented, and time based. 

Consultation

Engage independent expertise to assist with the 
SPIP and modern slavery risk assessment.

Independent experts were engaged to review CSIRO’s internal 
processes including human rights and modern slavery governance, 
conduct risk assessments, and assess viability of grievance 
mechanisms.

Define an ongoing consultation framework to 
utilise for ongoing statement preparation.

This process has been defined to guide consultation for risk 
assessment and statement preparation in ongoing reporting years. 
Key internal stakeholders have been identified for this Statement and 
will be reviewed for future statements. 

Disclosure

Ensure that the next Modern Slavery Statement 
addresses all mandatory criteria as set out in 
the Act.

The mandatory criteria have been included and are referenced in the 
Mandatory Criteria Index. 

Develop measures to assess the effectiveness of 
actions and update as required. 

Effectiveness will be assessed through the goals and milestones set 
out in the SPIP, in this Table of commitments, and annual progress 
reports.

Review year on year commitments, annual 
progress report to the Board and publicly report on 
progress made.

This ongoing commitment will be actioned each year during the 
drafting, review and publication of our Modern Slavery Statement.





In progress

Completed

New

Planned








Mandatory Critera Index

The table below details the page number and section of this Statement 
that addresses each of the mandatory criteria in section 16 of the Act.

Mandatory Criteria 1

Content location

Page 

1a. Identify the reporting entity


Our organisation

6

1b. Describe the reporting entity’s structure, 
operations and supply chains


Our organisation

6

1c. Describe the risks of modern slavery practices in 
the operations and supply chains of the reporting 
entity and any entities it owns or controls


Assessing and addressing operations risk 

Assessing and addressing supply chain risk

13

15

1d. Describe the actions taken by the reporting entity 
and any entities it owns or controls to assess and 
address these risks, including due diligence and 
remediation processes


Assessing and addressing operations risk

Assessing and addressing supply chain risk

13

15

1e. Describe how the reporting entity assesses the 
effectiveness of these actions


Assessing the effectiveness of our actions

17

1f. Describe the process of consultation on the 
development of the Statement with any entities the 
reporting entity owns or controls


Consultation in the development of the Statement

5

1g. Any other information that the reporting entity, or 
the entity giving the Statement, considers relevant


n/a







References

1. Ms Kathryn Fagg AO, Chair of the CSIRO Board is a 
responsible member of the principal governing body 
as defined by the Act

1 

2. Modern slavery is defined under s.4 of the Act and 
includes trafficking persons and the worst forms of 
child labour.



3. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Corporate-governance/
annual-reports/21-22-annual-report

4. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/strategy/
sustainability/2022-sustainability-report

5. https://www.csiro.au/en/work-with-us/funding-
programs/sme

6. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/challenges-missions/
Challenges

7. CSIRO Corporate Plan 2021–22, relevant to reporting 
period

.

8. Reporting entity for the purposes of the Modern 
Slavery Act 2018 (Cth)

9. http://www.mseq.vc/

10. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/strategy/sustainability/
Sustainability

11. https://www.csiro.au/en/research

12. https://www.csiro.au/en/work-with-us/funding-
programs

13. https://www.csiro.au/en/work-with-us/funding-
programs; https://www.csiro.au/en/careers/
Scholarships-student-opportunities

14. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/facilities-collections

15. These 38 ‘Spin-Outs’ are not considered reporting 
entities for the purpose of this Statement and are not 
majority owned or controlled.

16. https://www.csiro.au/en/work-with-us/funding-
programs/SME

17. https://mnf.csiro.au/

18. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Corporate-governance/
Access-to-information/Contracts

19. https://www.tenders.gov.au/App/Show/4FDC9EA2-
9DD7-B623-2CE6-67947907F0F0?ppId=&btnsubmit=View+Annual+Procurement+Plan

20. This spend analysis excludes credit card spend, which 
are all low value purchases made by CSIRO personnel 
to support research activities.

21. This spend data was from FY21 and is considered 
reflective of our regular spend and risk profile across 
the entire Reporting Period.

22. This approach is based on best practice according to 
the Commonwealth Guidance for Reporting Entities. 
Research sources for these risk factors includes: 
The International Trade Union Confederation Global 
Rights Index, The Walk Free Foundation Global Slavery 
Index, ILO Global Estimates of Modern Slavery: Forced 
labour and forced marriage, The US Department of 
State Trafficking in Persons Report, The US Department 
of Labor List of Goods Produced using Child Labour 
or Forced Labour, and the Verite Research in 43 
Commodities Worldwide. This analysis is quantitative 
as each data source has been combined as a centralised 
dataset to compare our areas of spend to known 
likelihood in each area of risk.

23. https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/
publications/guidingprinciplesbusinesshr_en.pdf

24. The RV Investigator has been highlighted due to 
risk exposures in seafaring and maritime industries 
according to the risk sources listed above.

25. This includes research in agriculture and fisheries 
where risks may be in partner and collaborator value-
chains.

26. Australia is ranked with relatively low risks on most 
external modern slavery risk indices such as the 
ITUC Global Rights Index, Global Slavery Index and 
Trafficking in Persons Report.



27. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Policies/Ethical-human-
research

28. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Policies/Child-Safe-
Policy

29. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Policies/Code-of-
Conduct

30. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Policies/People-Policy

31. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Policies/Health-Safety-
and-Environment-Policy

32. https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2013A00133

33. https://www.csiro.au/en/about/Corporate-governance/
Access-to-information/Public-Interest-Disclosure-
Scheme

34. Residual risks are the risks remaining when controls are 
taken into account.

35. Cleaning Accountability Framework Modern Slavery 
Guidance 2020

36. ILO Global Estimates of Modern Slavery: Forced labour 
and forced marriage.

37. https://www.iso.org/standard/63026.html

38. Topics include modern slavery, waste and circularity, 
and greenhouse gas emissions.

39. Addressing climate and environmental impacts may 
also serve to lower the vulnerability of people to 
situations of modern slavery. Therefore, addressing 
wider sustainability issues may serve to mitigate future 
modern slavery risks and impacts. To read more about 
this interconnection see A Vicious Circle, Anti-Slavery 
International, 2021

40. https://blog.csiro.au/covid-19-face-mask-
manufacturing/



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