North Western Universities Purchasing Consortium

The UK Universities Purchasing Consortia (UKUPC) is concerned about negative human rights impacts in its global electronics supply chains. Human rights risks in the ICT-sector are systemic and difficult to monitor due to the structure and complexity of electronics supply chains. With this in mind, UKUPC has joined a growing number of public bodies working collaboratively to strengthen corporate accountability and promote the effective implementation of human rights due diligence (HRDD). We aspire to meet these objectives together through the following means:

1. Achieving greater transparency in high-risk supply chains.
2. Supporting the increased use of worker-driven approaches to identify, assess, mitigate and manage human rights risks.
3. Promoting shared responsibility in the supply chain and meaningful stakeholder engagement that includes rightsholders.
4. Facilitating access to effective remedy for victims of harm and preventing retaliation.
5. Promoting the Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.

The participating institutions have organised themselves into working groups designed to engage common suppliers on specific concerns and drive systemic changes in the market. To-date, three working groups have formed: two to engage with the brands Apple and Cisco, respectively, and one to address industry-wide issues pertaining to the Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining. Electronics Watch, a not-for-profit workers’ rights organisation, serves as the secretariat for the working groups.
Public bodies routinely follow-up with their suppliers as part of efforts to monitor compliance with their contract conditions. Additional working groups may be established in the future as compliance concerns and/or opportunities to learn from emerging good practices arise.