The ALDI SOUTH Group co-signed a petition along with multiple international companies and NGOs, to ensure that living wages and incomes are included as a human right in the upcoming Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence directive (EU CSDD) and that their definitions should not be changed.
This alliance is made up of over 60 organisations, including Unilever, Tony's Chocolonely, L'Oreal, Patagonia and as initiatives such as UN Global Compact, Fairtrade, Fair Wear Foundation and many more.
Earlier this year, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a directive on corporate sustainability due diligence and the European Parliament and member states are now further developing this legislation. The signatories call on the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the member states to ensure living wages and incomes are included as a human right in the upcoming Directive and that they do not compromise or change on the definitions of a living wage and income.
The ALDI SOUTH Group is committed to fulfilling its responsibility to respect and address any adverse impact on human rights and environmental standards within its global supply chains. Respecting the worker's overall rights, living wages, and incomes is an essential part of our due diligence, and we consider them crucial in combating inequality and poverty.
To achieve a level playing field and drive real change, all companies should be required to understand and address their impacts on remuneration, the effect of their purchasing practices on wages and incomes along their supply chains.
For this reason, we welcome the EU Draft Directive on 'Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence' published in February 2022, requiring companies to respect human rights, including living wages and a living income.
However, due to the complexity of human rights infringements, companies should not be made solely responsible for enabling living wages along supply chains. The involvement of all relevant stakeholders in both production countries and the EU is necessary. We invite decision-makers to incentivise production countries to fulfil their duty to protect and to intensify social dialogue with workers and employers as well as to implement stronger enforcement mechanisms in domestic law.
