BUILDING SOCIAL IMPACT INITIATIVE
FRequently asked questions
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The BSI Initiative is a concerted and organized effort, coordinated by BDF, with ownership from construction companies, real estate developers and key stakeholders of the construction sector to improve the living conditions and access to services of workers and their children living in construction camps across Thailand. Every member of the BSI Initiative commits to this effort for sustainable change. BSI members benefit from training sessions, tools and key information to help them adopt good practices in line with national standards and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
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No, the BSI Initiative concerns all people living in construction camps. By applying the BSI Framework for Action, businesses will ensure better living conditions and access to essential services for both workers and children who happen to also live in the camps.
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Implementing the BSI Framework offers numerous benefits for companies:
Reduces risks of accidents in camps
Mitigates reputational risks
Strengthens brand image
Enhances competitiveness
Improves worker retention
Ensures compliance with ESG framework and sustainability reporting obligations
Contributes to a better society
By adopting the BSI Framework, companies can reap these advantages and make a positive impact on their operations and the broader community.
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Challenges faced by workers and children in the construction industry have been well-documented. Various studies, including "Building Futures in Thailand" published in 2018 by Baan Dek Foundation and UNICEF, have identified numerous intersecting risks such as poor living conditions, inadequate access to water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities, lack of documentation, pay below minimum wage, gender discrimination, violence, and limited access to healthcare and education, particularly for children. The Thai Stock Exchange has also classified the Thai construction sector as "high-risk" for modern slavery due to its heavy reliance on a significant migrant workforce and extensive subcontracting.
All of these risks can directly impact your business, affecting your company's reputation, the image of your construction project, as well as the productivity and retention of your workforce.
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The BSI Initiative goes beyond simply having high standards for construction camps. In today's business landscape, companies are expected to showcase their performance in terms of Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices. This entails collecting data and effectively communicating it to various stakeholders, including employees, shareholders, board members, investors, regulators, and customers. The BSI Initiative serves as a comprehensive tool for social impact and human rights due diligence in the Thai construction sector. It enables businesses, even those already performing well, to utilize the Framework to gather data across all their camps and demonstrate their social sustainability performance.
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Any company in the property and construction sector has a responsibility and vested interest in mitigating social risks within their supply chain. By participating in the BSI Initiative, engineering companies, developers, investors, and public project owners can effectively manage social sustainability and human rights risks in their supply chain. They gain access to tools that facilitate collaboration with their contractors, ensuring improved standards and overall project performance in a cohesive and collaborative manner. The BSI Initiative is a bespoke solution to mitigate risks while strengthening the brand and image of your business and construction projects.
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Businesses, with the support of the BSI Training Team, shall have their camp management staff carry out self-assessments in their camps to first establish a baseline of the level of risk according to the BSI Framework. Following the assessments, camp management staff then develop their action plans for each camp. During the pilot phase, action plans are developed under the guidance of the BSI Training Team, following this stage, camp management staff can refer to the BSI Toolkit to develop and implement action plans. Each action plan will depend highly on the camp itself, as well as the business’ priorities, capacity and resources. In any case, the BSI Training Team will support the capacity development of each business’ camp management staff to integrate the BSI Framework into their internal processes.
Click to view a concrete example of an action plan by a BSI Practitioner in the pilot phase:
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All tools, training, and support services provided by the BSI Initiative are offered free of charge. BSI Practitioners are responsible for including any associated expenses for camp improvements in their own budget. Existing practitioners have found that the financial costs of implementing the Framework are minimal to negligible, although this may vary depending on the current camp standards. The primary cost is related to personnel time for attending training sessions, which offers a significant return on investment by enhancing staff's operational capacity in camp management.
Click here for an example of camp improvement costs from a BSI Practitioner.
For developers joining as BSI Ambassadors, it is strongly recommended to include additional costs for Framework implementation in the budgets of new projects before contracting a construction company.
Other companies in the construction industry can join the BSI Initiative and implement the BSI Framework without incurring any direct costs.
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Understanding the nature of and addressing risks in worker camps should be considered alongside other material issues and within a businesses’ risk management and sustainability policy to mitigate such issues as accidents, injuries, conflict and legal issues. In doing so, it would increase the business’ enterprise value, ensure a robust labor supply chain, while building up the contractors’ and/or developers’ reputation as a responsible business.
Furthermore, according to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, all business enterprises have a responsibility to protect the rights of people who may be impacted by activities or business relationships which may cause, contribute, or be directly linked to the business’ operations, products or services. This means that construction contractors, developers, investors and financiers should seek to prevent or mitigate risks that their products, services or relationships are linked to. Large businesses in particular have a responsibility to leverage both their influence and resources to mitigate risks downstream in their supply chain.
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BSI Practitioners are ultimately responsible for the quality of their own implementation. It is in the best interest of each business to ensure quality implementation. As the practice of sustainability is growing, so is the risk of ‘social’ or ‘green’ washing, whereby companies misrepresent their sustainability practices in order to appease regulators, clients and investors. Engaging in this practice only further compounds existing risks by exposing businesses to loss of integrity, reputation and fines. Whatsmore, according to the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the ‘One Report’ mandatory framework is underpinned by legal liability for non-compliance, especially false information and omission of material information. A major difference from the voluntary disclosure where assurance of information accuracy and completeness is not obligatory is that under the new mandatory system, ‘ESG washing’ or ‘SDG Washing’ by listed companies will be illegal.
In terms of quality control from the BSI Initiative, the BSI team may conduct random spot checks to ensure validity of the Self-Assessment results for certain camps, this is to support the company in their implementation phase to identify potential challenges that operational staff may be having in carrying out assessments or action plans.
Upon completing the implementation of the camp improvement action plan, the BSI team issues a report recognizing the achieved improvements and offering valuable recommendations.
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The Self-Assessment Tool (SAT) is designed to prioritize areas that represent the greatest risk to the camp residents and the company. Following the camp assessment, the SAT will generate an automatic action plan with priorities to be taken into account. Then, the company will make its choices and develop its own action plan based on its social sustainability strategy, timeline, and priorities. Besides addressing the greatest risks, other improvements to living conditions should be made gradually.
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The BSI Initiative holds recognition from the Thai Green Building Institute, enabling BSI Members to earn an additional 2 points for Green Building certification upon confirmation assessment completion by the BSI team.
In addition, BSI Member companies showcasing progress and improved practices in construction camp conditions for workers and children can utilize BSI Member stamps, symbolizing their commitment to core values and social sustainability.
Finally, BSI provides measurement tools and automatic dashboards for members to assess and report their social performance. Results serve as valuable data points for sustainability reports, communication campaigns, and shareholder updates.
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Visible improvements in the camp can be observed within a few months. However, the length of training and implementation in camps varies based on the construction company's level of involvement and priorities. BSI Practitioners have the flexibility to choose whether to pilot the Initiative in one or multiple camps, but prioritizing camps facing higher risks is encouraged. The training package can be delivered within 4-10 months, and thereafter, a dedicated BSI Training Focal is assigned to provide ongoing support for integrating improved social practices into day-to-day business operations.
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Globally, various initiatives provide training on social sustainability and human rights due diligence processes. While most focus on consumer goods, particularly agricultural and garment products, there are a few initiatives related to construction and engineering. However, the Building Social Impact Initiative stands as the sole initiative of its kind in Thailand.
Example of similar initiatives across the world: