Forced Labour Report
Forced Labour and Child Labour Report for the Financial Year ended December 31, 2023
Introduction
This Forced Labour and Child Labour Report (this “Report”) has been prepared by E.G. Penner Building Centres Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “EG Penner”, “we”, “us” or “our”) in response to the requirements under Canada’s Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act (the “Act”) for our financial year ended December 31, 2023.
This Report covers the business operations of EG Penner in Canada. EG Penner is not subject to reporting requirements under supply chain legislation in jurisdictions outside of Canada, and this Report is therefore structured to meet the requirements of the Act. Applicability of the Act to EG Penner is based on EG Penner having a business presence (i.e., place of business, business activities, and assets) in Canada as well as meeting the financial thresholds related to assets and revenue as set out by the Act.
EG Penner recognizes that the manufacturing and retail industry plays an important role in preventing and reducing the risk of forced labour and child labour in Canada’s supply chains. We acknowledge the potential risks of forced labour and child labour in the manufacturing and retail sector and are committed to continuous improvement in our due diligence, risk assessment, remediation, and training processes.
Respect for Human Rights
EG Penner fully supports the objectives of the Act and opposes the use of all forms of forced labour and child labour in our operations and our supply chain. Respect for human rights is fundamental to our values, the long-term stability and growth of our business and to the wellbeing of the communities in which we operate.
As set out in the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (“UNGPs”), business enterprises have a responsibility to respect internationally recognized human rights. The responsibility to respect human rights requires that business enterprises: (a) avoid causing or contributing to adverse human rights impacts through their own activities, and address such impacts when they occur; and (b) seek to prevent or mitigate adverse human rights impacts that are directly linked to their operations, products or services by their business relationships, even if they have not contributed to those impacts. In applying the lens of the UNGPs, we have assessed the potential for our operations to cause, contribute to, or be directly linked to adverse human rights impacts, including forced labour and child labour. For the reasons described in this statement, we are of the view that there is low risk that our internal operations have caused or contributed to adverse human rights impacts.