We adhere to the highest social standards at our facilities all over the world and make sure that our partners do the same. We have therefore joined the Business Social Compliance Initiative, and all our facilities and sites are independently audited to meet a fair code of conduct. Ironically, this commitment has not come at the expense of price. We discovered that a more stable and committed workforce actually drives our quality and guarantees you a sustainable product and production.
The Social Policy applies to all our products, our inhouse production- and logistics processes, and up the supply chain to the source of our raw materials.
For all relevant private label products, RICHARD BEHR & CO. requires compliance with all legal provisions in the area of our social policy. Our code includes the ten following key elements of the Business Social Compliance Initiative BSCI, to improve workers environments:
We are committed to these socially acceptable standards throughout all stages of the supply chain.
RICHARD BEHR & CO. pursues the goal to actively sustain its range of 100% socially acceptable products, production, and packaging, sourced from production facilities which demonstrably apply social standards that exceed legal provisions. Furthermore, our suppliers are obliged to comply with social minimum standards at all stages of the production chain, i.e. from the fattening farm to the processor to the store (refer to Corporate Governance Principles/BSCI Code of Conduct). RICHARD BEHR & CO. is member of the Business Social Compliance Initiative BEPI and drives their standards and codes of conduct throughout its complete supply chain.
We actively promote compliance with social standards and for this purpose, we have already taken precise measures, amongst others, in the following areas:
Our clients are among the strongest drivers and champions of industrial level convergence of our industry toward acceptable social standards throughout the supply chain. We work with our clients to help them formulate their standards, goals, and monitor progress toward achieving the goals. We follow our highest client standards.
RICHARD BEHR & CO. sources products exclusively from producers who are compliant with all local and international social standards and/or certified accordingly. This enables us to avoid the use of suplly chain elements that will contribute toward socially, moraly or ethically unacceptable behavior.
RICHARD BEHR & CO. closely follows all textile-related social issues and topics and strives to at all time be at the forefront of the newest standards, tests, and labels.
We also reject products that do not meet the standards of our Social Policy throughout the supply chain. We strive to not only not adopt any products or raw materials that do not meet the standard, but we will actively eliminate products or raw materials from our portfolio, that do not comply with our Social Policy.
At RICHARD BEHR & CO., we implement our social requirements in close cooperation with our suppliers. The implementation of our internal requirements will be conducted by the buying departments with the support of the responsible drivers of Corporate Governance. Specific requirements, goals and measures will also be implemented in close cooperation. We monitor the implementation among our suppliers and we conduct risk-oriented evaluations. We reserve us the right to have the requirements of our Social Policy verified by internal and/or external audits, if necessary. Moreover, we expect our suppliers to ensure that all personnel responsible for the handling of human resource issues, with impact on the social standards, are effectively trained to carry out routine practices in a way that complies with social standards, and, where necessary, is qualified to promote good standards of social behavior within their areas of responsibility. The present Social Policy is part of our terms and conditions. Where instances of non-compliance with our policies are detected, suppliers are expected to provide corrective action plans that clearly demonstrate how relevant violations will be resolved within a specific timeframe. The Managing Directors are informed on the status of implementation on a regular basis.
We aspire to continuously improve products of our assortment and keep our portfolio on a high, and 100% socially acceptable standard. In this context, we always consider our customers' wishes and the market environment. The transition to more social alternatives includes the following:
Since we aim to offer more socially compliant products, an exchange with external partners is indispensable. Therefore, we are in close contact with NGOs, representatives of the scientific community, and stakeholders.
RICHARD BEHR & CO. is actively implementing social standards throughout our supply chain when opportunities arise. Here are a number of pilot projects that RICHARD BEHR & CO. has implemented today already:
We commit to keeping these measures in place, expanding them, and adding further measures as they become available.
We are committed to not only meeting these standards but also surpassing them measurably and clearly. For this, each of our plants is audited by BSCI on a regular and unannounced basis. Additionaly each year, the current Socila Policy is assessed and, if required, adjusted. In the long-term, this is the only way to guarantee a socially and responsible behavior of the complete supply chain. In addition, based on this policy, we formulate goals and evaluate the extent to which these goals have been achieved on an annual basis.