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Reducing forced labour in supply chains: what could traditional companies learn from social enterprises?

Evelyne Vanpoucke (Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, Universite Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium)
Robert D. Klassen (Ivey Business School, Western University, London, Canada)

International Journal of Operations & Production Management

ISSN: 0144-3577

Article publication date: 15 August 2023

Issue publication date: 4 September 2024

506

Abstract

Purpose

Forced labour is one of the most exploitative practices in supply chains, generating serious human right abuses. The authors seek to understand how relationships for reducing forced labour are influenced by institutional logics. The emerging supply chain efforts of social enterprises offer particularly intriguing approaches, as their social mission can spur creative new approaches and reshape widely adopted management practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors study supplier relationships in the smartphone industry and compare the evolving practices of two cases: the first, a growing novel social enterprise; and the second, a high-profile commercial firm that has adopted a progressive role in combating forced labour.

Findings

The underlying institutional logic influenced each firm's willingness to act beyond its direct suppliers and to collaborate in flexible ways that create systematic change. Moreover, while both focal firms had clear, well-documented procedures related to forced labour, the integration, rather than decoupling, of forced labour and general supply chain policies provided a more effective way to reduce the risks of forced labour in social enterprises.

Research limitations/implications

As authors’ comparative case study approach may lack generalizability, future research is needed to broadly test their propositions.

Practical implications

The paper identifies preconditions in terms of institutional logics to successfully reduce the risk of forced labour in supply chains.

Originality/value

This paper discusses how social enterprises can provide a learning laboratory that enables commercial firms to identify options for supplier relationship improvement.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

This paper forms part of a special section “Towards Systemic Change: How Can Operations and Supply Chain Management of Socially Driven Enterprises Contribute to Change Making”, guest edited by Davide Luzzini.

The authors would like to thank Louise Ceysens for her assistance in data collection and analysis.

Citation

Vanpoucke, E. and Klassen, R.D. (2024), "Reducing forced labour in supply chains: what could traditional companies learn from social enterprises?", International Journal of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 44 No. 10, pp. 1786-1813. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPM-09-2022-0596

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited

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