Mercy Community is a Catholic ministry finding inspiration in the Gospel, the charism of Mercy, the life of Catherine McAuley and the traditions of the Sisters of Mercy. Mercy Community supports and inspires people in need to live healthy, connected lives within inclusive communities. Our vision is a world where people, families and communities are strong in spirit, healthy and connected.

In line with this, Mercy Community has no tolerance for the exploitation of people in any form. To ensure we adhere to laws prohibiting human slavery, human trafficking, and child labour, we take proactive measures to carefully select ethical providers. We have produced a Modern Slavery Statement which outlines our rigorous and clear expectations for social accountability and compliance with the Modern Slavery Act 2018. Mercy Community’s policies and procedures have been strengthened to comply with our obligations towards mitigating modern slavery risk in all its forms wherever it may occur in Mercy Community. As a participant in the Australian Catholic Anti-slavery Network (ACAN), we regularly meet to strengthen our approach to mitigating modern slavery risk. As an example of this working relationship with ACAN, Mercy Community also encourages its suppliers to upload their modern slavery statements into a global database (SEDEX) to enable an assessment of the supplier’s risk profile and risk mitigation strategies. 

To educate our teams, we are including Anti-Slavery e-learning modules for our current employees and all new employees. Through our Anti-Slavery procurement procedures, we commit to further educate and guide our teams to make ethical choices in their professional responsibilities and personal lives.  

At Mercy Community, we believe in the inherent dignity of every human being, irrespective of age, sex, race, abilities, or any other quality. Slavery destroys that dignity, and therefore, we remain dedicated to our mission to enhance the lives of those we support while upholding ethical and responsible practices within our service streams. 

Focusing on the future, we look forward to continuing our work to sustain Mercy Community’s commitment to preserving human dignity. We urge all our stakeholders to join us in creating a world where human rights and dignity are universally respected, upheld, and safeguarded. Together, we can forge a future free from the chains of modern slavery. 

For more details, including the complete Mercy Community Modern Slavery Statement, please call the Modern Slavery Liaison Officer on 07 3866 4160 or email info@mercycommunity.org.au.