Samsung Electronics Ranks 2nd Globally in Supply Chain Human Rights Management, Surpassing Intel, Apple, and MS

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyewon] Samsung Electronics has ranked second in the world in the global supply chain human rights management sector among information and communication technology (ICT) companies, surpassing Intel, Apple, and Microsoft (MS).

According to the 2020 report published on the 10th by the UK-based 'KnowTheChain,' which evaluates companies' global supply chain human rights management, Samsung Electronics scored 69 points alongside Hewlett-Packard (HP), ranking joint 2nd out of 49 companies in the ICT sector. The top spot was taken by HP Enterprise with 70 points.

KnowTheChain is a global project that inspects and evaluates companies' supply chain human rights management (forced labor) levels. The evaluation is jointly conducted by four influential global organizations in the human rights field, including the international corporate human rights organization BHRRC (Business Human Rights Resource Center) and the corporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) rating agency Sustainalytics.

The project evaluates companies in sectors including ICT, food and beverage, and apparel and footwear, publishing reports every two years. The evaluation criteria cover seven major areas?governance, risk management, purchasing, monitoring, etc.?with 77 questions, and the results serve as a benchmark for assessing supply chain human rights management levels.

KnowTheChain has been evaluating ICT companies since 2016. Samsung Electronics ranked 7th (54 points) in the first year, 6th (62 points) in 2018, and rose to 2nd place (69 points) this year.

This result surpasses global competitors such as Intel and Apple (each 68 points, 4th place), Dell (63 points, 6th place), and Microsoft (59 points, 7th place). Samsung explained that this achievement is due to continuously improving labor conditions within the supply chain, including partners, and maintaining transparent communication. In particular, Samsung Electronics received the highest score of 69 points in the 'Purchasing Practices' (responsible purchasing) category. It also earned high scores compared to the industry average in 'Commitment & Governance' (implementation level & governance) and 'Monitoring' categories, with 93 points and 80 points respectively.

The report stated, "Samsung Electronics inspects risks related to forced labor when selecting partners, transparently discloses the partner selection process externally, and ensures compliance through the partner code of conduct."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.