– BAT delivering on ESG priorities to construct A Higher Tomorrow for all stakeholders
– BAT is first tobacco firm to publish a Human Rights report – launched on UN Human Rights Day
– BAT pronounces dedication to intention for zero baby labour in its agricultural provide chain by 2025
LONDON, Dec. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — British American Tobacco p.l.c. (BAT) has immediately develop into the primary tobacco firm to publish a Human Rights Report. The report coincides with UN Human Rights Day and highlights the corporate’s dedication and actions to guard human rights throughout its world enterprise and provide chain. BAT has additionally introduced a dedication to intention for zero baby labour in its agricultural provide chain by 2025.
BAT’s Human Rights Report is aligned with the United Nations Guiding Rules Reporting Framework. The report highlights the in depth measures BAT takes to advertise, uphold and defend the human rights throughout its in depth provide chain, which incorporates 90,000 straight contracted farmers. The report additionally options case research to showcase partnerships and actions aimed toward bettering farmer livelihoods and securing the long-term sustainability of rural communities.
The report is revealed on UN Human Rights Day which, this 12 months, focuses on the worldwide impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on human rights. Making certain the well being and welfare of all workers world wide is central to BAT’s technique to construct A Higher Tomorrow for all stakeholders. The report highlights most of the initiatives the corporate has adopted to handle the pandemic together with:
- Growing a possible COVID-19 vaccine candidate
- Producing and distributing protecting gear and sanitiser
- Offering monetary assist to suppliers the place required
- Making certain entry to COVID-secure workplaces for staff all through our provide chain
ESG is a key driver of BAT’s transformation journey to construct a Higher Tomorrow for all stakeholders. On the centre of our technique is our objective to scale back the well being affect of our enterprise by way of providing a variety of fulfilling and probably reduced-risk merchandise. We proceed to be clear that flamable cigarettes pose critical well being dangers, and the one method to keep away from these dangers is to not begin or to give up. BAT encourages those that in any other case proceed to smoke, to modify utterly to scientifically-substantiated, reduced-risk options.
Jack Bowles, BAT CEO, mentioned: “ESG is entrance and centre in all that we do and is a key driver of our objective to construct A Higher Tomorrow.
“We recognise that pressured labour is a critical threat in agricultural provide chains and I’m proud that we had zero reported circumstances of pressured labour in 2019. We undertake a zero-tolerance method to pressured labour while having a transparent dedication to intention for our tobacco provide chain to even be free of kid labour by 2025.”
“This journey won’t be straightforward, however by specializing in probably the most tough points I imagine we are able to push ourselves to create A Higher Tomorrow for everybody.”
The report might be downloaded from www.bat.com/humanrightsreport
Notes to Editors
In regards to the report
The report is aligned with the United Nations Guiding Rules Reporting Framework, which offers complete steering for firms to report on how they respect human rights in accordance with the UN Guiding Rules for Enterprise and Human Rights (UNGPs). Highlights of the report embody:
Tobacco provide chain
- Dedication to intention for zero baby labour in BAT’s tobacco provide chain by 2025
- 99.4% of farms monitored had no incidences of kid labour recognized
- 100% of recognized baby labour incidents remediated and resolved
- Human rights affect assessments, aligned with the UNGPs, accomplished in India, Indonesia and Mozambique, together with engagement with over 900 rights-holders
- 5,000+ human rights coaching classes, with over 350,000 attendances
- 298 girls’s empowerment coaching classes, with greater than 24,000 attendees
- Intensive COVID assist, together with reaching some 34,000 farmers in Bangladesh with PPE and COVID communications; enhancing clear water provides for farming communities in Kenya; and increasing cell physician models in Pakistan to succeed in greater than 150,000 individuals
Past the tobacco provide chain
- 100% product supplies suppliers assessed for human rights dangers
- 94 suppliers independently audited for office situations in 31 international locations
- 71% of corrective actions totally accomplished and verified by 12 months finish
- Provider COVID assist, together with serving to these fighting cashflow points by guaranteeing that, the place wanted, they’re paid sooner than present fee phrases require
- Upholding human rights requirements by implementing options for when on-site audits haven’t been attainable throughout COVID restrictions
BAT’s individuals
- New ambition to extend the proportion of girls in senior groups to 40% by 2025
- 100% workers skilled on BAT’s Requirements of Enterprise Conduct
- US$3m pledged by the Group’s US enterprise to organisations that fight racism and inequality
- Grew to become signatories to the UK Race at Work Constitution for supporting equality and race within the office
- We achieved certification as a Incapacity Assured Dedicated employer beneath the UK authorities’s accreditation scheme.
- Applied a variety of measures to create ‘COVID-19-secure’ workplaces, and bolstered the in depth wellbeing assist obtainable to workers, together with on-line medical consultations and psychological well being assist.
About BAT
BAT is a number one, multi-category client items enterprise, established in 1902. Our objective is to construct A Higher Tomorrow by decreasing the well being affect of our enterprise by way of providing a larger alternative of fulfilling and fewer dangerous merchandise for our shoppers. The corporate has introduced a goal of accelerating the variety of its non-combustible product shoppers to 50 million by 2030; and to attain at the least £5 billion in New Classes revenues in by 2025.
Ahead Trying Statements
This communication accommodates sure forward-looking statements, together with “forward-looking” statements made inside the that means of Part 21E of the US Securities Change Act of 1934. These statements are sometimes, however not at all times, made by way of using phrases or phrases similar to “imagine,” “anticipate,” “may,” “could,” “would,” “ought to,” “intend,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “will,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “venture,” “positioned,” “technique,” “outlook”, “goal” and comparable expressions. These embody statements concerning our intentions, beliefs or present expectations regarding, amongst different issues, our outcomes of operations, monetary situation, liquidity, prospects, progress, methods and the financial and enterprise circumstances occurring occasionally within the international locations and markets during which the BAT Group operates.
All such forward-looking statements contain estimates and assumptions which are topic to dangers, uncertainties and different elements that would trigger precise future monetary situation, efficiency and outcomes to vary materially from the plans, targets, expectations and outcomes expressed within the forward-looking statements and different monetary and/or statistical knowledge inside this communication. Among the many key elements that would trigger precise outcomes to vary materially from these projected within the forward-looking statements are uncertainties associated to the next: the affect of competitors from illicit commerce; the affect of antagonistic home or worldwide laws and regulation; modifications in home or worldwide tax legal guidelines and charges and the affect of an unfavourable ruling by a tax authority in a disputed space; antagonistic litigation and dispute outcomes and the impact of such outcomes on the BAT Group’s monetary situation; modifications or variations in home or worldwide financial or political situations; the affect of the COVID-19 pandemic; antagonistic selections by home or worldwide regulatory our bodies; the affect of market dimension discount and client down-trading; translational and transactional international alternate charge publicity; the affect of significant harm, sickness or dying within the office; the flexibility to keep up credit score scores and to fund the enterprise beneath the present capital construction; the lack to develop, commercialise and rollout New Classes; and modifications available in the market place, companies, monetary situation, outcomes of operations or prospects of the BAT Group.
It’s believed that the expectations mirrored on this communication are cheap, however they could be affected by a variety of variables that would trigger precise outcomes to vary materially from these at present anticipated. Previous efficiency is not any information to future efficiency and individuals needing recommendation ought to seek the advice of an unbiased monetary adviser. The forward-looking statements mirror information and knowledge obtainable on the date of preparation of this communication and BAT undertakes no obligation to replace or revise these forward-looking statements, whether or not because of new data, future occasions or in any other case. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
No assertion on this communication is meant to be a revenue forecast and no assertion on this communication ought to be interpreted to imply that earnings per share of BAT for the present or future monetary years would essentially match or exceed the historic revealed earnings per share of BAT.
Extra data regarding these and different elements might be present in BAT’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Change Fee (“SEC”), together with the Annual Report on Kind 20-F filed on 26 March 2020 and Present Stories on Kind 6-Okay, which can be obtained freed from cost on the SEC’s web site, http://www.sec.gov, and the Firm’s Annual Stories, which can be obtained freed from cost from the British American Tobacco web site www.bat.com.
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SOURCE British American Tobacco
