Respecting Human Rights
We believe that we have the opportunity to make a positive contribution towards a wide range of human rights goals, whilst at the same time having a responsibility to mitigate the human rights related risks our activities may pose to others.
Meeting our human rights commitments
Our policy on respecting human rights is incorporated in our Code of Conduct and is guided by the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the International Bill of Human Rights, the International Labour Organization’s Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely SDG 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing), SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 8 (Decent work and economic growth).
Our Code of Conduct outlines the human rights commitments applicable to our people, as well as our stakeholders including our employees, business partners and service providers. We conduct human rights due diligence reviews of new business opportunities with the aim of avoiding adverse human rights impacts on our workforce, service providers and the communities in which we operate.
We aim to identify and manage human rights-related risks and to remediate any adverse human rights impacts we have caused or to which we have contributed. A risk-based approach that includes consideration of human rights and community impact issues is applied towards our projects in line with international standards. Due to the nature, location and scale of our activities the most prevalent human rights issues for Sasol includes the rights of communities near our operations, occupational health and safety, labour conditions, security arrangements and supply chain responsibility.
We assess and manage the potential environmental, health and community impacts of our projects in line with international standards and impact assessments are embedded in our project process. Our community engagement mechanisms allow our neighbours to raise concerns about the impacts of our activities and enable us to respond to those concerns through credible and effective non-judicial processes, informed by the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
We aim to keep employees, contract staff and facilities safe, while respecting the human rights and security of local communities. We respect the principles of freedom of association, the right to collective bargaining, non-discrimination and equal opportunity, along with adequate work conditions, adequate remuneration and the elimination of forced or child labour. When operating in areas or countries with high levels of conflict, poor human rights records or weak governance or conflict, we strive to follow the principles outlined in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.
Ensuring the security of our employees
Our newly accepted Group Security policy demonstrates our commitment to protecting our employees, service providers, assets, operations and business interests, in a responsible and sustainable manner. This is aligned with our values and Code of Conduct. The Group security policy has been aligned with the global security principles, taking specific cognisance of the human rights provisions. We have also adopted the UN’s Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights.
DEVELOPING A STANDALONE HUMAN RIGHTS POLICY
We are drafting a stand-alone Human Rights policy to reinforce our commitment to the advancement of human rights. The policy will enable us to further foster a culture of respecting human rights across our organisation. It will also enable us to identify policy gaps and initiate a process that alerts us to new areas of human rights risk. We believe it will also help increase trust levels with external stakeholders, as we will be positioned to understand and address their concerns. Ultimately, a robust Human Rights policy will further demonstrate our commitment to international good business practice, and provide us with the tools to embed our commitments within our organisation.
