This statement is made pursuant to s.54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and sets out the steps that Gonzalez Byass has taken and is continuing to take to ensure that modern slavery or human trafficking is not taking place within its business. Modern slavery encompasses slavery, servitude, human trafficking and forced labor. Gonzalez Byass is committed to acting ethically and with integrity and transparency in all business dealings.
We are a company that manufactures and sells quality wines and spirits worldwide. While our roots are those of a Jerez-based family-run winery, we also represent the winemaking diversity of Spain. Our business is focused on ensuring consumers enjoy unique products and services, thanks to a broad distribution network with which we work closely and in an agile manner. We are willing to collaborate with people and entities that enable us to maximise the value we offer our shareholders, employees, customers and consumers. We encourage our collaborators to develop, we respect the natural environment, and we improve the social and economic environment, to which we feel bound by our tradition.
Gonzalez Byass’ values are:
- Pride at being part of González Byass.
- Innovation.
- Active communication.
- Commercial spirit.
- Teamwork.
- Being driven by results.
- Working to seek excellence and paying attention to detail.
- Sustainability, so as to strike a balance between corporate financial development and respect for the natural and social environment in which we conduct our business.
Our policies reflect that Gonzalez Byass is committed to ensuring that there is no modern slavery or human trafficking in our supply chains or in any part of our business. Our Anti-slavery Policy reflects our commitment to acting ethically and with integrity in all our business relationships and to implementing and enforcing effective systems and controls to ensure slavery and human trafficking is not taking place anywhere in our supply chains. As part of Gonzalez Byass’s commitment to ensuring that there is no modern slavery or human trafficking in its supply chains, Gonzalez Byass has the following internal policies to ensure that it is conducting business in an ethical and transparent manner:
- Recruitment – Gonzalez Byass conducts robust checks on any new employee including eligibility to work in the UK to safeguard against human trafficking or individuals being forced to work against their will.
- Whistleblowing Policy – Each of our business divisions has a whistleblowing policy so that all employees can raise any concerns that they might have without fear of reprisals.
Due Diligence
As part of our initiative to identify and mitigate risk we have in place systems to:
- Identify and assess potential risk areas in our supply chains.
- Mitigate the risk of slavery and human trafficking occurring in our supply chains.
- Monitor potential risk areas in our supply chains.
- Protect whistle blowers.
Supplier Adherence to our values and ethics
We have zero tolerance to slavery and human trafficking. To ensure all those in our supply chain and contractors comply with our values we have in place a supply chain compliance programme.
An initial risk assessment of suppliers
Managing any risks highlighted with appropriate contractual clauses
An ongoing review of contractual obligations
We have a dedicated compliance team, which consists of involvement from the following departments:
- Human Resources
- Procurement and Legal
- Approval by the Board of Directors:
This statement has been approved by the Board of Directors on October 2016.
Juan Manuel Sánchez Martín
Human Resources Director
Date: October 2016