STUTTGART, Germany—Daimler AG is developing a sustainable supply chain for its worldwide assembly plants. In particular, the automaker is strengthening enforcement activities that relate to human rights, including the responsible procurement of raw materials. For instance, any type of child labor practice by downstream suppliers is not allowed.
“To prevent violations of human rights effectively at an early stage, [we] have created the necessary tools to do so,” says Renata Brungger, a member of Daimler’s board of management responsible for integrity and legal affairs. “With several tens of thousands of suppliers, and even more subsuppliers, we need to proceed in a risk-oriented manner. Our human rights respect system provides the systematic foundation for this.”