Human rights at Hapag-Lloyd

Human Rights at Hapag-Lloyd

Human Rights

Our responsibility for people and the environment

As one of the world's leading container liner shipping companies, responsible corporate governance and respect for human rights and our planet are key concerns for Hapag-Lloyd. That is why we are guided by ethical business practices, ensure that we treat each other with respect and follow strict standards when organising working conditions, which we also expect our suppliers and business partners to comply with.

Michel Pradel
Michael Pradel, Senior Managing Director Global Procurement and Human Rights Officer

"At Hapag-Lloyd, we assume our social and environmental responsibility. We have therefore anchored the protection of human rights and the environment as a fundamental component of our corporate values."

Human Rights

Policy Statement


The Executive Board of Hapag-Lloyd reaffirms our commitment to respecting human rights and our planet through the
Policy Statement on Social Responsibility and Human Rights. In this declaration, we provide detailed information on how we fulfil our due diligence obligations and what measures we take to continuously adapt to changing conditions and further improve the protection of human rights and the environment in our business area and along our value chain.

Supplier code of Conduct & Code of Ethics
We expect our business partners and suppliers to follow this path together with us. We therefore updated our Supplier Code of Conduct, which is binding for all our suppliers, in 2023. In our Global Code of Ethics, we describe our principles for fair and respectful dealings with our employees, customers and business partners. We are convinced that we can achieve more in terms of making a positive contribution to people, society and the environment if we act together with our suppliers and business partners.

Modern Slavery Statement
In addition, our Modern Slavery Statement outlines the measures we take to prevent modern slavery and human trafficking in our operations and supply chains. It complements our Global Code of Ethics and fulfils the requirements of the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015. The current Statement can be downloaded here .

Risk management


Hapag-Lloyd has established a risk management system to ensure compliance with the social and environmental standards set out in our Policy Statement on Social Responsibility and Human Rights, including the International Bill of Human Rights, the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the core labour standards of the International Labour Organization.

We carry out regular and ad hoc risk analyses internally and at our direct suppliers in order to prevent human rights violations. In addition, we have defined exactly what steps we will take if we become aware of imminent or actual violations of human rights and environmental protection by us or our suppliers. We regularly review the effectiveness of our preventive and remedial measures. Communication with all relevant internal and external stakeholders and the public is also part of our risk management.


Risk Management at Hapag-Lloyd

Speak Up Line


In order to be able to respond to potential and actual human rights and environmental violations at an early stage, we have set up the Speak Up Line as a central complaints channel.

Hapag-Lloyd cultivates a "Speak Up" culture and encourages all internal and external stakeholders to report unethical and illegal behaviour and to inform us of violations of our standards, which we have defined, for example, in our Declaration of Principles and in our Global Code of Ethics. The Speak Up Line is available around the clock.

We ensure that all reported concerns are dealt with quickly, objectively, fairly and confidentially and do not tolerate any form of retaliation or reprisals against whistleblowers. The processing of reports is governed by our Speak Up Line Procedural Rules .

 

Reporting

Our Human Rights Report provides transparent insights into how we implement corporate sustainability due diligence across our operations and global value chains. It outlines our governance framework and risk-based approach. It also describes the measures we take to prevent, mitigate, and address potential human rights risks, as well as the continuous development of our Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence System. The report is published on an annual basis. Download the latest version Human Rights Report 2025 .

In 2021, we presented a new sustainability strategy with the topics "Clean shipping and future-proof propulsion systems", "Diversity and society" and "Compliance and responsibility". Sustainability is an integral part and one of the main pillars of Hapag-Lloyd's corporate strategy. We describe the measures and progress made in this area in our sustainability progress report

Reporting at Hapag-Lloyd

Contact the Human Rights Office

If you have any questions about human rights at Hapag-Lloyd, please send an e-mail to [email protected] .