Human rights policy
Our human rights policy covers fundamental human rights, identified human rights risks and our human rights commitment.
At Fredman Group and our subsidiaries, we want to develop our work community in a way that ensures that we respect and support internationally accepted human rights in all our activities. Our human rights policy is based on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and we are committed to respecting internationally recognised human rights throughout our value chain.
Our human rights policy covers fundamental human rights, identified human rights risks and our human rights commitment.
Our actions have a direct and indirect impact on the human rights of our employees, customers and people working in our supply chains.
Fredman’s Code of Conduct addresses many themes related to cooperation and respect for people. Every employee is expected to follow the Code of Conduct. We assess the realisation of human rights and equality in our work community by means of personnel surveys and take any issues raised into consideration when developing our activities.
We also require that all our suppliers and business partners respect internationally recognised human rights and comply with the minimum human rights standards described in Fredman’s Supplier Code of Conduct.
Our commitment to human rights is part of our ongoing efforts to improve our social responsibility and ensure that human rights are respected in our activities.
We are committed to the following principles:
• Non-discrimination and equality: We treat all our employees, customers and partners equally. We do not tolerate discrimination, bullying or harassment of any kind. The goal of Fredman’s Diversity Plan (Equality and Non-discrimination Plan) is to promote equality and equal opportunities for employees.
• Working conditions and terms of employment: We provide safe and healthy working conditions for all our employees. We comply with all applicable labour legislation and ensure that our employees have fair terms of employment.
• Human rights in the supply chain: We monitor the implementation of corporate social responsibility with supplier surveys and regular communication. We ensure that our contract templates include clauses on corporate social responsibility. A few of our suppliers are from countries classified as high-risk countries, and we have carried out an audit by a third party for some of these suppliers. Our goal is to carry out third-party audits of all our suppliers in high-risk countries by 2027.
• Right to privacy: We respect the privacy of our employees and customers and take appropriate measures to safeguard their personal data.
• Prohibition of forced labour and child labour: We do not accept forced labour or child labour in any form. Through of choice of suppliers, we strive to ensure that forced labour or child labour do not occur in any form in our supply chains.
• Right to life and health: We look after the safety and health of our employees and customers in all our activities.
• Employees’ right to organise: We respect the right of our employees to join trade unions and participate in collective bargaining.
Fredman’s own operations are based in Finland, and most of our sourcing is from European countries where the risk of human rights violations is low. We estimate that potential human rights risks are concentrated in the primary production of raw materials. We also recognise that one of our associated industries, the restaurant sector, is vulnerable to human rights abuses, including in Finland.
We are committed to preventing negative human rights impacts from our business activities if they occur or come to our attention. Our ability to independently investigate human rights throughout our value chain is limited. For this reason, we invest in long-term relationships and open cooperation with trustworthy suppliers.
If a Fredman employee or other relevant stakeholder suspects in good faith that someone is violating human rights within the context of Fredman’s business activities, they are asked to report the matter immediately. Employees should primarily report the suspicion to their supervisor or to human resources. The report can also be made through Fredman’s whistleblowing channel, which is public and available to all stakeholders.
If we identify or receive a report of a potential human rights violation in our supply chain, we will investigate the situation as a matter of priority and work with the supplier to resolve any issues. We will terminate the supplier relationship if human rights violations are identified and the supplier is unwilling to take steps to correct its conduct.
This Human Rights Policy has been approved by Fredman’s Management Team and Board of Directors. Our management, together with personnel, are responsible for implementing the policy in practice. We are committed to developing our Human Rights Policy, reviewing and updating the policy where necessary and working with all our stakeholders in respecting and promoting human rights.