China is a country known as the “world’s factory” and has developed a reputation for overlooking human rights for economic returns. However, if you dig deeper and speak to factory managers, not all of them keep two sets of payroll just to “trick” 3rd party social compliance auditors in order to pass assessments mandated by their multinational clients.
Some of these factory managers simply do not know any better. It is a matter of lack of exposure than lack of ethics.
A measurable, objective Corporate Social Responsibility program is the mark of any ethical organization. This separates the organizations that merely use CSR as a P.R. strategy, and the ones who are taking proactive steps to improve the working conditions in China.
4Stones CSR Consulting arm helps you develop a comprehensive social compliance program based on your company’s Code of Ethics/Conduct. The process is as follows:
-
Conduct a NEEDS ASSESSMENT with your leadership team
-
Social Compliance Program - Design a comprehensive, robust social monitoring program to help you mitigate supply chain risk and manage your brand’s integrity.
-
Assessment Tool (Report) - You will be given an assessment tool that can be used to evaluate your suppliers
-
Execution Schedule – You will be provided with a schedule for evaluating your entire supply chain (depending on the size and geographic span of your supply chain)
-
-
Corrective Action Plan (CAP) template – the CAP will be written at the end of each assessment, and requires written consent by the factory manager. This CAP is a collaborative document that requires both you and the supplier’s commitment in order to be successfully executed.
The overall goal of a CSR program is to help improve working conditions in your supply chain, which will lead to increased moral and therefore productivity, as well as to protect your brand from public and NGO scrutiny. Sustainable change takes time and continuous effort, and 4stones is committed to helping our clients create lasting change and improve working conditions.
