TPV Technology joins labour rights & minerals groups

TPV Technology has joined The Mekong Club and the European Partnership for Responsible Minerals, extending the display supplier's work on labour rights and supply chain oversight across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific, North America and South America.

The memberships build on the group's existing supply chain due diligence efforts as companies face closer scrutiny over labour conditions and sourcing practices. The decision also supports TPV's response to the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive.

TPV is the parent group of TP Vision, MMD Monitors and Displays, AOC and PPDS. Its operations span manufacturing sites and supplier networks in multiple regions, making labour standards and upstream sourcing a key issue for its procurement and compliance teams.

Labour risks

The Mekong Club is a Hong Kong-based not-for-profit that works with companies on modern slavery, forced labour and human trafficking. Its members come from sectors including manufacturing, finance and hospitality, and include multinational consumer brands and retailers.

Membership provides access to research, training, tools and a network of organisations working to address labour abuses in supply chains. For manufacturers with extensive supplier bases, the issue has become more prominent as regulators and investors demand more detailed checks beyond direct operations.

Stefan Van Sabben, Global Director of CSR and sustainability at TPV Technology, said: "We are a production oriented organisation with a worldwide network of locations and suppliers. Our responsibility focuses not only on our own sphere of influence but also on processes further down the supply chain. We believe in working both as a community and as a part of communities to amplify our efforts. That is certainly the case with our social responsibility."

He said membership of The Mekong Club would support that work: "We strictly prohibit all forms of forced labour and modern slavery in both our own operations and in our supply chains. Membership of the Mekong Club will help us ensure forced labour is never used in the scope of our business."

Van Sabben added: "To address modern slavery challenges across sectors and industries, collaboration with other organisations is key. We look forward to collaborating with The Mekong Club and fellow members to deepen our knowledge and to exchange ideas and learnings with other businesses that are serious about making a difference."

Across its business units, TPV follows human rights and labour standards set by the United Nations Global Compact, the International Labour Organisation and the Responsible Business Alliance.

Mineral sourcing

The second membership focuses on the start of the electronics supply chain. The European Partnership for Responsible Minerals brings together companies, public bodies and civil society groups to address human rights and environmental risks linked to mineral extraction and processing.

The initiative focuses in particular on artisanal and small-scale mining in conflict-affected and high-risk areas. It also promotes more responsible sourcing of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold, minerals widely used in electronic products and components.

For electronics makers, these materials remain a persistent compliance issue because tracing their origin through traders, smelters and refiners is difficult. Industry groups have expanded audit programmes and reporting frameworks in response to concerns about links between mining income and armed groups, especially in parts of Central Africa.

TPV already publishes an annual conflict minerals report covering its policy and procedures for responsible sourcing. It states that it does not purchase raw materials, subassemblies or supplies known to contain conflict minerals that directly or indirectly finance or benefit armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or other conflict-affected and high-risk areas.

The group has been a member of the Responsible Minerals Initiative since 2015 and joined the International Tin Supply Chain Initiative in early 2023. It has also funded and supported mining governance projects run by the tin initiative in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and recently renewed that support for a further three years.

Marcella Klinker, Sustainability Specialist for human rights and supply chains at TPV Technology, said: "For us at TPV Technology, joining the EPRM reinforces our commitment to responsibly sourcing the minerals used in our products and continuously strengthening our mineral due diligence practices. We look forward to collaborating with the EPRM and other members on developing innovative partnerships and initiatives that enhance due diligence practices and support more responsible mineral supply chains."

The EPRM's members include companies such as Royal Philips, NXP, Samsung, Intel and Fairphone, alongside refiners, traders, industry groups and non-governmental organisations. That broad structure reflects a wider shift in due diligence, with manufacturers increasingly relying on collective initiatives to gather data, set standards and monitor risk in lower tiers of the supply chain.

For TPV, the latest memberships show that social sustainability is increasingly being treated as a procurement and governance issue as well as a reputational one, particularly in sectors with complex global supply chains and large contract manufacturing footprints.

The move places labour rights and mineral traceability alongside existing compliance work, with Klinker saying the company wants to keep "continuously strengthening our mineral due diligence practices."