Vendor: A vendor is a company who supplies products to other companies, more commonly known as "customers".

Vendor compliance are the rules by which vendors will conduct business with their customers.
Vendor compliance rules help companies streamline and standardize their internal procedures for dealing with vendors, but the vendors must make adjustments to their operations to react to their customer's requests.

Without a common set of rules governing how all of those vendors must conduct business with the single customer, the customer's overall business operations, (purchasing, receiving, inventory control, accounting, etc.) would be chaotic at best.
The inefficiencies of operation would have to be passed onto the retail consumer, resulting in higher prices for the goods we purchase.

People who buy goods in stores should have a say as to the conditions under which those goods were produced. By their economic and political pressure they could fight child labor, they could protect women against exploitation, they could make the ideal of the minimum wage a living fact. (Eg. Sweatshops.)

Consumer Activism:

Over the years, consumer activism has influenced many industries. The results have been new product offerings, new labels, and new packaging. For example, the automobile industry was disinterested, often hostile, to providing airbags, anti-lock brakes, and other safety features until consumer demand necessitated their change of heart.

Similarly, before the early 1990s, who had ever heard of "environmental-friendly labeling? Or, "not tested on animal" labeling? These were both an often-reluctant industry responses to consumer demand.

These examples reinforce the tremendous power that consumers have over industry. The same influence has been and can continue to provide improvements in social issues such as child labor and sweatshop exploitation. Media and consumer outrage over child labor and sweatshops spurred many companies to initial action within the last decade. In the early 1990s, industry leaders who developed corporate codes of conduct (primarily targeting their overseas contractors) were Levi Strauss, Reebok, and Liz Claiborne. Other companies followed each emphasizing its own list of abusive practices that it would not tolerate.

The Impact of Globalisation on Working Conditions

Globalization has shrunk the physical distances that existed a few years ago. The world has shrunk and has become a global village. Industrialization gave impetus to manufacturing and Globalisation has resulted in sourcing from regions which have low cost manufacturing. Ever since the sourcing giants like USA and some EU countries started looking towards the Eastern part of the world as competitive sources, there was a burgeoning of very small developing countries who had abundant work-force and could compete with the larger developing countries of the east. The very obvious affect has been price war. Fierce competition between countries to offer lowest price for same product.

Not much can be done about the quality of the product because the buying country very well defines quality standards and they would not accept anything less. The labour hence becomes the victim of increasing pressure. The easiest target being child labour-Unskilled, poor, vulnerable, ready to do any job at a very low wage.

The pressure also started showing in the way factories and workers were kept. Nobody even thought of spending extra on providing clean/hygienic/safe working conditions, as it would cost money and get added to the cost of the final product and hence make the product uncompetitive. The workforce in these countries child or adult is extremely poor and would do anything to earn two square meals a day. The factory owners took full advantage of this fact.

Social

Social Responsibility relates to the steps companies take to ensure that their goods have been produced under acceptable conditions. That means that the goods have been produced lawfully, through fair and honest dealing, in decent working conditions, and without exploiting the people who made them. Any adverse publicity suggesting that companies are not respecting these standards alerts consumers and, in turn, can affect the sales and profitability of an organisation.

Legal and Ethical

Contribute to society Communicate with society Behave as a good corporate citizen Play an active role in preserving the global environment Prioritize fairness and trust in corporate activities Comply with national laws and regulations Raise motivation and create a corporate culture that lets employees demonstrate their ability Break off relations with antisocial forces

VENDOR

SUBMITS DOCUMENT FOR VERIFICATION

HR / VENDOR MANAGER

DOCUMENTIS OK

AUDITOR

DOCUMENT NOT OK / NOT SUBMITTERD

ADVISORY SERVICE

RETURN TO VENDOR AUDIT REPORT PREPARATION

CENTRAL COMPLIANCE TEAM SIGNING BY FM MANAGER AND VENDOR TEAM REPRESENTATIVE

For Vendor

For Principal Employer

For HR/ Compliance team

Loss of credibility Future business Lawsuit Loss of contract Responsibilities not carried out Penalties

Loss of pay Termination of contract Penal action

Show cause notice to Directors Fines Penalties Closure of business

What is ISO? ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is the worlds largest developer of voluntary International Standards. International Standards give state of the art specifications for products, services and good practice, helping to make industry more efficient and effective. Developed through global consensus, they help to break down barriers to international trade. What they do? ISO develops International Standards .It was founded in 1947, and since then it has published more than 19 000 International Standards covering almost all aspects of technology and business. From food safety to computers, and agriculture to healthcare, ISO International Standards impact all our lives.

The ISO story began in 1946 when delegates from 25 countries met at the Institute of Civil Engineers in London and decided to create a new international organization to facilitate the international coordination and unification of industrial standards. In February 1947 the new organisation, ISO, officially began operations. Since then, they have published over 19 000 International Standards covering almost all aspects of technology and manufacturing. Today they have members from 164 countries and 3 335 technical bodies to take care of standard development. More than 150 people work full time for ISOs Central Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland.

ISO International Standards ensure that products and services are safe, reliable and of good quality. For business, they are strategic tools that reduce costs by minimizing waste and errors and increasing productivity. They help companies to access new markets, level the playing field for developing countries and facilitate free and fair global trade.

The ISO 9000 family addresses various aspects of quality management and contains some of ISOs best known standards. The standards provide guidance and tools for companies and organizations who want to ensure that their products and services consistently meet customers requirements, and that quality is consistently improved.
There are many standards in the ISO 9000 family, including: ISO 9001:2008 - sets out the requirements of a quality management system ISO 9000:2005 - covers the basic concepts and language ISO 9004:2009 - focuses on how to make a quality management system more efficient and effective ISO 19011:2011 - sets out guidance on internal and external audits of quality management systems.

For Society

When products and services conform to International Standards consumers can have confidence that they are safe, reliable and of good quality. For example, ISO's standards on road safety, toy safety and secure medical packaging are just a selection of those that help make the world a safer place. To make sure that the benefits of ISO International Standards are as broad as possible, ISO supports the involvement of consumers in standard development work with its Committee on consumer policy(COPOLCO). International Standards on air, water and soil quality, on emissions of gases and radiation and environmental aspects of products contribute to efforts to preserve the environment and the health of citizens.

For business

International Standards are strategic tools and guidelines to help companies tackle some of the most demanding challenges of modern business. They ensure that business operations are as efficient as possible, increase productivity and help companies access new markets.

Benefits include: Cost savings - International Standards help optimise operations and therefore improve the bottom line Enhanced customer satisfaction - International Standards help improve quality, enhance customer satisfaction and increase sales Access to new markets - International Standards help prevent trade barriers and open up global markets Increased market share - International Standards help increase productivity and competitive advantage Environmental benefits - International Standards help reduce negative impacts on the environment

For government

ISO standards draw on international expertise and experience and are therefore a vital resource for governments when developing regulations. National governments can make ISO standards a regulatory requirement (remember ISO standards themselves are voluntary). This has a number of benefits:

Expert opinion - ISO standards are developed by experts. By integrating an ISO standard into national regulation, governments can benefit from the opinion of experts without having to call on their services directly. Opening up world trade - ISO standards are international and adopted by many governments. By integrating ISO standards into national regulation, governments help to ensure that requirements for imports and exports are the same the world over, therefore facilitating the movement of goods, services and technologies from country to country.

OSHA
OSHA is part of the United States Department of Labor. The administrator for OSHA is the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health. OSHA's administrator answers to the Secretary of Labor, who is a member of the cabinet of the President of the United States. With the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, Congress created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training, outreach, education and assistance.

WRAP is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the certification of lawful, humane and ethical manufacturing throughout the world.

Why the WRAP Apparel Certification Program is Special Apparel producers are accountable for their global production practices to consumers, retailers, governments, and others. Several organizations are dedicated to setting manufacturing standards, particularly regarding human rights. WRAP is unique among apparently similar organizations because it combines all of the following important attributes.

GAP Codes of Conduct

Zara Codes of Conduct

Clean Clothes Campaign