Modern Slavery Act 2018

The Modern Slavery Act 2018 is Commonwealth legislation, Act No. 153 of 2018, administered by the Attorney-General’s Department. It requires large entities to publish an annual statement on modern slavery risks in their operations and supply chains. It works as a transparency law rather than a prohibition, so it creates no new offence for the entities that report under it.

Reading the Act by its parts is the quickest way to find what applies to you:

• Part 1 carries the definitions, including section 5 on the meaning of reporting entity and section 10 on extra territorial application
• Part 2 covers the statements, with section 16 setting out the mandatory criteria every statement has to address and section 16A dealing with explanations for failure to comply
• Part 3 establishes the Modern Slavery Statements Register at section 18, which is why every statement is public and comparable
• Part 3A creates the Australian Anti-Slavery Commissioner, inserted by the 2024 amendment
• Part 4 holds the machinery, including the three year review at section 24

An entity is caught once consolidated revenue reaches A$100 million for the reporting period, and smaller organisations may lodge a voluntary statement under section 6. The statement must be approved by the principal governing body and signed by a responsible member, which is what pushes this onto the board agenda rather than leaving it with procurement. A statutory review has recommended adjusting the revenue threshold, so confirm the current position before relying on the figure.

One distinction decides most scoping arguments. Modern slavery under this Act means serious exploitation, covering trafficking, servitude, forced labour, debt bondage, forced marriage and the worst forms of child labour. Substandard conditions and underpayment are serious problems in their own right, but they sit outside the Act’s definition. The current compilation is on the Federal Register of Legislation. Treat this as general information rather than legal advice.

Board oversight of a reporting obligation sits naturally in a GRC system, with the compliance management system tracking what was done and when. For the awareness layer, see the modern slavery course and the full compliance training courses.