The Cadeler Supply Chain Sustainability Code of Conduct

Legal and regulatory compliance

All suppliers shall ensure their operations and the products and services supplied to Cadeler comply with all national and other applicable laws and regulations.

Not employing forced labour

Suppliers must not use forced, coerced, bonded, indentured, or involuntary prison labour in any form.

All work, including overtime work, shall be voluntary. Employees should be free to leave employment upon giving reasonable notice. Suppliers should not require employees to hand over government-issued identification, passports or work permits as a condition of employment.

Not employing under-aged workers

Suppliers must not employ any person under the local legal minimum employment age, or employ any person in a manner which conflicts with completion of their compulsory schooling. Neither must they employ any person below the age of 16 years on a full-time basis.

Additionally, all young employees must be protected from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous, or likely to interfere with the child’s education, or that may be harmful to the child’s health, or their physical, mental, social, spiritual or moral development.

Suppliers should also adhere to legitimate workplace apprenticeship programmes and comply with all laws and regulations governing child labour and apprenticeship programmes.

Compensation and working hours

Suppliers must provide each employee at least the local legal minimum wage and benefits. Suppliers must pay their employees promptly, providing each with clear, written accounting for every pay period. Wages should be paid regularly, on time and be fair in respect of work performance. Payment should not be made more than one month in arrears, and deduction should not be made from employees’ pay for disciplinary reasons or to compensate the employer for providing safer work conditions. Working time periods must not exceed the legal limit, and should be modified where relevant to reflect any particular hazards or risks of the work being done. Employees should be properly compensated for overtime according to the law and within legal working hour limits. Employees should be granted their stipulated annual leave and sick leave without any repercussions, and should be able to take their stipulated maternity or paternity leave in accordance with national and local laws.

Discrimination and rights

All conditions of employment must be based on an individual’s ability to do the job, and never on the basis of personal characteristics or beliefs. Suppliers shall not discriminate on the basis of race, colour, national or ethnic origin, gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability, age, cultural background, social group, marital status, family status or political opinion, and other similar factors.

Employees shall be treated with dignity and respect. This should be achieved by providing a workplace in which no employee shall be subject to any physical, sexual, psychological or verbal harassment or abuse, nor is there to be the threat of such treatment.

Suppliers shall have in place communications mechanisms and grievance procedures that allow employees to raise concerns and complaints with management.

Cadeler does not require suppliers’ employees to be members of a worker’s association or union, but does require that its suppliers shall respect employees’ rights to choose whether to be represented by third parties and to bargain collectively in accordance with local law. Harassment, intimidation, penalties, interference or reprisal should not be used to interfere with such legitimate activities.

Protection for the environment

We all have a responsibility to look after the natural environment both for today and in the future. All stages in the Supplier’s supply chain shall comply with, and preferably exceed, applicable national and legal environmental requirements.

Suppliers should have in place an effective system for managing environmental issues including measuring and reporting on their environmental impact, seek to improve the impact of their operations upon the environment, and take a precautionary approach to environmental matters such as by conserving natural resources and energy consumption and reducing waste.

We will have a strong preference to select suppliers whose goods or services can make a significant difference to helping to reduce Cadeler’s environmental impact towards our target of “net zero”. Chemical and other materials posing a hazard if released to the environment are to be avoided if possible. If this is not possible they are to be identified and managed to ensure their safe handling, movement, storage, recycling or reuse and disposal.

Wastewater and solid waste generated from operations, industrial processes and sanitation facilities are to be monitored, controlled and treated as required prior to discharge or disposal. Air emissions of volatile organic chemicals, aerosols, corrosives, particulates, ozone depleting chemicals and combustion by-products generated from operations are to be characterised, monitored, controlled and treated as required prior to discharge.

All types of waste, including water and energy, should be reduced or eliminated at source or by practices such as modifying production, maintenance and facility processes, materials substitution, conservation, recycling and re-using materials.

Health and Safety in the work place

Suppliers must have in place, or agree to adopt in a reasonable timeframe, health and safety management systems and standards designed to reduce work-related injury and illness, and promote the general health of employees. Suppliers must ensure information regarding health and safety systems and standards are made readily available to employees in appropriate language/s.

Suppliers should ensure that employees are aware, through newsletters, training or other effective and frequent means of communication, of the suppliers’ obligations with regard to site safety and their own obligations of ensuring the safety of themselves and other employees.

Suppliers should provide for employees as a minimum, reasonable access to potable water and sanitary facilities, fire safety, emergency preparedness and response, industrial hygiene, adequate lighting and ventilation, occupational injury and illness prevention and machine safeguarding. Suppliers will also ensure these same standards apply to any dormitory or canteen facilities.

Suppliers should have in place a policy, which should be in accordance with all national and other applicable laws and regulations, regarding alcohol and other drug abuse prevention, and testing for such, and should communicate this appropriately to employees.

High ethical standards

Suppliers must be committed to the highest standards of moral and ethical conduct in their business. All forms of corruption, extortion, fraud and bribery must be prohibited, including those for the Supplier’s own benefit or for the benefit of their relations, friends or associates.

Suppliers should disclose to us immediately any situation that may appear as a potential material conflict of interest. They are also expected to disclose if any of our officials or consultants working with Cadeler has a material interest of any kind in the supplier’s business or any kind of economic ties with the supplier.

Sharing the standards with subcontractors

Suppliers should work with their own service providers and subcontractors to ensure that they also strive to meet the principles of this Code. This should be integrated within the supplier’s business processes to select and manage the performance of subcontractors and other service providers. Suppliers and subcontractors should be paid accurately, in a timely manner and in accordance with contractual agreements.

Communication, documentation and inspection

Suppliers are responsible for communicating the requirements of these Cadeler Supply Chain Sustainability Code of Conduct standards to their employees, and the Code should be made freely available to employees in their local language/s and in readily accessible places. Suppliers must maintain records of all relevant documentation required to demonstrate compliance with this Code of Conduct and required laws, and where requested should agree to make these documents available for Cadeler or its designated auditor as evidence of compliance. Where appropriate, and with a suitable courtesy notice period, suppliers may be asked to permit site and facility inspections for verification purposes in accordance with this code.