The move follows allegations of health and safety violations and sexual abuse at the sports retailer as well as criticism of its use of controversial zero hour contracts and holding staff after work, without pay, for security checks.
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Investigations by the Guardian newspaper past year found that staff at its Derbyshire warehouse were harangued for not working fast enough, while long staff searches after work sometimes meant workers earned below the minimum wage.
Over the next 12 months, RPC will lead a review into Sports Direct’s working practices and employment model, corporate governance and corporate reporting and communications.
Under-pressure retailer Sports Direct turned down an offer by its chairman to step down on the eve of today’s (7 August) showdown with investors.
Sports Direct said it would instigate an external report evaluating the board later this year and RPC would be instructed to carry out another “360” review of wider corporate governance prior to the 2017 AGM.
After putting his money away, Ashley returned to discussing Sports Direct staff being paid below the minimum wage.
The meeting had always promised to be stormy after it leaked out that Hellawell had offered to quit at the weekend, only to have the offer rejected by the board.
Investors are expected to line up to try to veto the re-election of Hellawell, a former police chief.
Meanwhile, Standard Life Investments, which holds 5.8 per cent of Sports Direct’s issued share capital, said that it had voted against the company’s remuneration report and against the reappointment of all of the non-executive directors.
Mr Hellawell has said he will step down if, at next year’s meeting, a majority of the independent shareholders still do not support him.
“I am a man who gets some things very right and other things very wrong”, he said. “It is our opinion that even then, substantial strengthening of the non-executive members of the board will be required, particularly in the crucial role of Chairman”.
The six strikes policy will be suspended as soon as possible, to be replaced by the grievance and disciplinary procedures already used for permanent employees.
Royal London Asset Management said yesterday that while the pledge was “a positive improvement on previous practices”, it “sets the bar quite low”.
Later, the firm said it would put a workers’ representative on its board to “give workers a voice at the highest level and to help ensure that all staff are treated with dignity and respect”.
Hartlepool MP Iain Wright, chairman of the House of Commons Business Committee which investigated Sports Direct, welcomed the report but said it did not go far enough.
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Hellawell faces a rough ride from investors at Sports Direct’s annual shareholder meeting later today.
