Modern Slavery Reform in New Zealand: How Businesses should Prepare

On 29 January 2026, a cross party modern slavery bill was introduced into the New Zealand Parliament, signalling renewed momentum towards formal modern slavery regulation. While the final shape and timing of legislation remain uncertain, this development is a clear indication of strong political appetite to increase transparency and accountability for New Zealand organisations in addressing human rights risks across their operations and supply chains.

For many New Zealand organisations, modern slavery risk sits largely beyond direct suppliers, embedded in offshore manufacturing, imported goods, labour hire and complex, multi tier value chains. This makes risk difficult to see, assess and manage using traditional approaches.

With modern slavery reporting regimes already in place across multiple jurisdictions, including the UK, Australia, the EU and Canada, organisations that wait for legislation before acting risk being left with rushed, fragmented and costly responses.

This webinar will unpack what the proposed Modern Slavery Bill contains, why its cross party nature matters, and what it signals about the future direction of modern slavery regulation in New Zealand. The session will then focus on how organisations can prepare now by embedding proactive due diligence into procurement and supplier management, rather than relying on reactive approaches.

While modern slavery compliance is often viewed as a regulatory burden, it also presents a significant opportunity. Organisations that start early can strengthen supply chain resilience, improve risk visibility, build stronger supplier relationships, and position themselves as credible and trusted leaders in ethical procurement.

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What we’ll cover

• An overview of the New Zealand modern slavery bill
• What this development signals about future regulatory and stakeholder expectations
• Where modern slavery risks tend to concentrate in New Zealand supply chains
• The role of procurement in moving from disclosure to proactive due diligence
• Practical steps organisations can take now to prepare, regardless of legislative timing

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Who this session is for

This session is designed for procurement, sustainability and ESG, legal, risk and compliance teams responsible for managing human rights and supply chain risk in New Zealand organisations.

It is particularly relevant for organisations with complex or offshore supply chains seeking to adopt a structured, risk-based approach to modern slavery due diligence.

The session will also be valuable for senior leaders and board members looking to understand what is coming, how modern slavery risk fits within broader ESG and enterprise risk frameworks, and how to respond with confidence.

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Can’t attend live?

Register anyway and we’ll send you the recording and resources after the session.