C7: Human rights incidents
Confirmed incidents in your own workforce and those you know of in your value chain.
In brief
C7 asks whether your own workforce has had confirmed incidents of child labor, forced labor, human trafficking, discrimination or other human rights issues. If it has, you may describe the actions taken. C7 also asks whether you are aware of confirmed incidents involving workers in your value chain, affected communities, consumers or end-users that were identified during the reporting period. Under EFRAG's guidance, "confirmed" has a strict meaning: a formal finding by a court, the OECD or an authority.
At a glance
- Requirement
- Essential: incidents in own workforce and known incidents in the value chain. Describing the actions is voluntary.
- 10 employees or less
- Voluntary.
- Value chain cap (from 2027)
- Confirmed incidents in own workforce and in the value chain, for companies with more than 10 employees.
- In Selko Report
- Page "Code of Conduct"
What changed from VSME
- Renamed: from "severe negative human rights incidents" to "human rights incidents".
- Clarified: value chain incidents are those identified during the reporting period.
- Changed: the questions on own workforce and the value chain are essential for companies with more than 10 employees. Under VSME, they were "if applicable".
- New: voluntary for companies with 10 employees or less.
VS Standard Reference
The official text of the Voluntary Standard, Annex I to Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1560.
Selko Insights
How Selko applies it
One question per topic
Selko Report asks whether there were confirmed incidents in your own workforce, and if so, for which topics: child labor, forced labor, human trafficking, discrimination or other. For each topic, you can describe the incidents and how you responded. Describing the response is voluntary, but it helps readers understand what you did.
What "confirmed" means
EFRAG's guidance counts only incidents that are evidenced by objective, factual and verifiable information and that a court, the OECD or an administrative authority has formally found. An open proceeding or an internal case counts only once it has such a formal finding. An allegation that is still being investigated is not a confirmed incident.
The value chain: what you know
Answer Yes if you are aware of confirmed incidents involving workers in your value chain, affected communities, or consumers and end-users, for example child labor at a supplier. The question is about what you know. It does not require you to audit your value chain.
Frequently asked questions
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