Today we announced the names of the 125 companies we will be benchmarking across three sectors in 2018. Our benchmark are the cornerstone of our efforts to equip companies with the information they need to understand their relative performance on addressing forced labor in their supply chains.
Our 2018 benchmarks will use updated methodology which was also published today. The new methodology includes feedback from a diverse set of stakeholders including previously benchmarked companies, the investor community, and civil society organizations. KnowTheChain intends to update the methodology after each benchmarking series to account for the ever-evolving nature of the field. Some of the most notable changes to the 2018 methodology include a deeper look at efforts further down supply chains, a greater focus on performance over policies, and an emphasis on how companies are strengthening worker voices and recruitment themes.
Both the methodology and company list were developed with Sustainalytics, a global leader in ESG and Corporate Governance research and ratings, and with KnowTheChain partners, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre and Verité.