It underscores the company's commitment in eliminating forced labour and unfair hiring practices
SEEK has announced the appointment of Scott Stiles as its Special Advisor of Fair Hiring in Asia, as it doubles down on its commitment to fight modern slavery and unfair modern practices in the region.
Stiles, who will be reporting Chief Strategy Officer of Asia Michele Manigart, is tasked to identify and address risks and vulnerabilities in SEEK's processes and platforms that could be exploited by unscrupulous actors.
"He will champion initiatives that can help provide job seekers with clarity and awareness of their rights and warnings about known unfair hiring practices, particularly affecting migrant, manual, and domestic workers so that candidate interactions with SEEK's employment platforms result in safe and fair employment outcomes," read the company's announcement.
In addition, Stiles will also be leading initiatives on fair hiring practices with partners and governments to end modern slavery.
"I have always believed that forced labour and unfair hiring are solvable world problems. The progress we have seen in the last nine years has shown this to be true, but these are deeply ingrained issues that require regionwide market intervention over a sustained period of time," said Stiles in a statement. "SEEK's platforms make us uniquely well positioned to drive this change."
Stiles's appointment comes after an "APAC-wide search" for potential people who would take on the role as Special Advisor at Fair Hiring in Asia, according to SEEK's CEO of Asia, Peter Bithos.
"We've been conducting an APAC-wide search to find a highly experienced individual in this space who can be fully dedicated to this issue and spearhead our efforts for some time. Bringing Scott onboard is only the beginning of our continuous, long-term effort to help end pockets of slavery in the region," said Bithos.
Stiles brings with him experience from his roles as co-founder and former CEO of Hong Kong-based Fair Employment Foundation, where he used market-based interventions to eradicate forced labour of migrant workers across Asia.
Read more: How tech can help HR leaders root out 'modern slavery'
According to Manigart, such experience from Stiles will not only benefit the company but also the region.
"SEEK will not only benefit from his experience and deep understanding of the region's labour rights and issues, but also from his clear passion for human rights and strong desire to make real impact in this area," she said.
Stiles's appointment strengthens the company's commitment in eliminating modern slavery and unfair hiring practices across Asia, particularly in locations where it operates such as Hong Kong, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
"As an organisation that aims to improve millions of lives through better careers, we have a responsibility to ensure our marketplace is a safe, digital environment for job seekers across the region, and we take this seriously," said Bithos.
"We are committed to providing trusted and valid platforms for workers to find decent jobs and for employers to hire ethically, safeguarding against the risk of modern slavery in advertising job opportunities that could be deceptive in recruiting for forced labour."
SEEK Asia is the parent company of employment platforms Jobstreet and JobsDB, two leading online employment marketplaces in Asia.
