Human Rights

Respecting Human Rights In Our Operations

We recognize our responsibility to respect human rights throughout our organization.

West Fraser respects the international principles of human rights including those expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.  Beyond the human rights and freedoms protected in the constitutions and charter laws of the United States and Canada, West Fraser’s culture, business practices, policies and Code of Conduct clarify the company’s commitments to human rights.

West Fraser recognizes and respects the constitutionally protected rights and treaty rights of Indigenous Peoples and the principles outlined in the United Nations Declaration for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Further, this is part of our Indigenous Peoples' Policy and incorporated into independant, voluntary certifications for timber procurement activities, which reinforce the recognition of workers and labour representatives' rights in a manner that encompasses the intent of the International Labor Organization (ILO) core conventions.

We are committed to providing a safe and healthy work environment and fair working conditions for all employees. Our Company will not tolerate child labor, forced labor, physical punishment, harassment or abuse.  We recognize lawful employee rights of free association and collective bargaining. We are committed to ensuring safe, appropriate labour and employment conditions for our workers and contractors, including respect for human rights, non-discriminatory workplaces and fundamental labour standards. Our expectation is our suppliers, contractors and business partners similarly demonstrate respect for human rights in their dealings with our organization.

Our business provides significant economic activity and prosperity to the communities in which we operate, and we engage and consult with our communities to build strong and healthy relationships. We seek to maintain respectful, mutually beneficial relationships with our partners and in communities where we have operations.

We encourage our employees and contractors, as well as community members, to bring human rights concerns to our attention through our site-level feedback mechanisms. We are committed to engaging with our communities to address the respect for human rights where we operate.

Code of Conduct

As per our Code of Conduct, we are committed to continual improvement of our human rights standards and practices.  We believe every employee and potential employee, as well as every customer, supplier, contractor or other person in a business relationship with West Fraser must be treated with dignity and respect, and that our employees are also responsible for treating others with dignity and respect. We are committed to working with Indigenous Peoples in a manner that promotes mutual respect and understanding of each other's interests, values and goals.

We do not condone, tolerate or ignore any harassment or discrimination on any ground protected by applicable law, and will not condone, tolerate or ignore violence or threats of violence. Training is provided to our managers so they can maintain a harassment, discrimination and violence-free workplace, and promptly address concerns raised with, or observed, by them.

We review and assess the effectiveness of and our compliance with these commitments. All of our operations adhere to the human rights laws of the United States and Canada, which includes protection of our employees’ rights of free association and collective bargaining. See our Code of Conduct, section 5. Human Rights, Discrimination and Harassment