Workforce Health Across the Value Chain 2025

Conclusion: A call to action Labour resilience across supply chains is both urgent and strategic; it requires coordinated multistakeholder action and fundamental shifts in corporate strategy. Building a resilient supply-chain workforce requires coordinated action across companies, industries and governments – truly a multistakeholder effort. This action is improved with data, accountability and financing mechanisms that enable sustained investment in worker health and climate adaptation. The business case is clear: companies that act early to protect their supply-chain workforce will have a competitive advantage in an increasingly volatile world. To meet the moment, this research supports a new approach to labour resilience, anchored in four core shifts: 1. From workers as cost centres to workers as assets Supply-chain labour – especially indirect, migrant or contract workers – is essential to continuity and competitiveness. Worker well-being is not ancillary; it is fundamental. Companies that invest in resilience will be better positioned to manage shocks, secure supply and deliver long-term value. 2. From compliance-based checkbox to strategic integration What gets measured gets managed – embed worker well-being alongside environmental and financial metrics into risk modelling, procurement standards and board-level accountability frameworks. This requires board- level involvement, cross-functional ownership and harmonized reporting systems. 3. From crisis response to planned adaptation Move beyond after-the-fact crisis response and begin allocating capital to front-line infrastructure: health services, insurance schemes, cooling systems and worker housing. These investments protect both people and productivity.4. From individual pilots to systemic scale via multistakeholder action Isolated programmes, however successful, cannot solve systemic challenges. Scalable change requires multistakeholder coordination across suppliers, industry peers and civil society but also with governments and health systems that provide the broader care infrastructure. Aligning efforts across public and private actors ensures that worker health interventions are sustainable, integrated and capable of meeting long-term needs. This agenda is ambitious but actionable. Tools already exist to support this transformation. Data platforms, impact measurement frameworks, blended finance vehicles and public–private partnerships are increasingly accessible. The next frontier is implementation – at scale, with urgency and in alignment with climate and economic goals. Governments, multilaterals and investors must also play a role. Regulation can set minimum standards. Capital can reward leadership. Procurement can prioritize resilience. But it is companies, especially multinationals with extended supply chains, that can lead the way. As climate volatility intensifies, the question is not whether to invest in labour resilience, but how quickly and effectively businesses can mobilize. This is the path forward for supply-chain stability, for sustainable leadership and for shared prosperity in an era of systemic risk. The path forward is not easy. But it is necessary – and it is achievable. By reimagining responsibility and investing in shared resilience, organizations can structure supply chains that are not only competitive but humane and future-fit. Workforce Health Across the Value Chain: Organizational Insights to Mitigate Risk and Create Sustainable Growth 29