Our suppliers
Why is it important for Next to trade ethically?
Next sources the products it sells from many countries around the world. We recognise the responsibility we have to work closely with our global suppliers, and are committed to ensuring our products are made in a clean and safe environment, in accordance with all relevant local and national laws and legislation, and by workers who are treated with respect and paid fairly for the work they do.
Our approach
The Next Code of Practice (COP) is our set of ethical trading standards which form an integral part of our business and relates to all products bearing the Next Trade Mark or sold by Next. Our Code applies to every country we source from, including the UK, and has ten key principles which set out the minimum standards we expect our suppliers to comply, with in relation to workers' rights and conditions of work, including working hours, minimum age of employment, health, safety, welfare and environmental impacts. Our stakeholders want to know that the products sold by Next have been made by suppliers who show respect for the welfare of their employees and the environment. The Next COP was first launched in 1998 and since then we have continued to dedicate both time and resources to upholding workers' rights and working conditions in the factories that make products for Next. Our COP is aligned to the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Base Code and reflects the most relevant international standards with respect to labour practices (International Labour Organisation Conventions).
Through our ethical trading programme, we have been working for over ten years to raise the standard of working conditions in the factories where our products are made. Establishing long-term partnerships with our suppliers has enabled us to work with them to raise awareness of the benefits of working to achieve the requirements of our Code.
Next joined the ETI in 2002, where we continue to be both an active and committed member by contributing to many of their working groups and projects. Next is represented at Board level, chairs the Homeworkers Group, as well as participating in the Purchasing Practices Group, Wages Project, China Working Group, Decent Work Project, Annual Report Group and the Sri Lanka Working Group.
The ETI is an alliance of companies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and trade unions working together collaboratively to promote and improve the implementation of corporate codes of practice which cover supply chain conditions. The ultimate goal of this alliance is to ensure that the working conditions and rights of workers producing for the UK market meet or exceed international labour standards.
Our ethical trading programme has five key elements :
- communicate our ethical standards to suppliers
- promote better work places through our factory monitoring programme
- support our suppliers through a programme of continuous improvement
- build capacity within our international supply chain
- work in collaboration with others to pursue solutions for some of the more complex and systemic problems we cannot solve alone
We continue to believe the best way to maintain the integrity of the COP audits for suppliers who manufacture for Next is to manage the process in-house with its own team of auditors. We have a team of more than 30 auditors based in our key global sourcing locations, whose responsibility it is to work with our suppliers to help them reach the standards set out in our Code.
PROGRESS ON OPPORTUNITIES FROM 2008 REPORT
KEY
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Achieved
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Ongoing/on track
= Not
commenced
| Opportunities identified in 2008 | Status | How we have progressed |
| COP Supplier Conference to be delivered in three additional sourcing regions | |
Decision was taken during 2008 not to hold the conferences and re-direct the resources into other projects |
| Revise six tier auditing rating to facilitate the business to better manage the risk of non-compliance and strengthen links between the business and the support of suppliers who are working to comply with the requirements of our Code | |
Achieved |
| Roll out factory toolkit training on CD to our suppliers | |
The toolkit is currently at consultation stage with one of our key suppliers and is due to be launched in Autumn 2009. See page 15 for more information about our work in this area |
| Issue Next Migrant Worker policy and Next Home Worker policy | |
Achieved. Issued December 2008 |
| Aim to carry out further audits within the next tier of our supply base i.e. fabric mills/raw material suppliers | |
Ongoing. We have focused our resources during 2008 into higher risk areas we have identified within our primary tier supply chain. We have focused on areas where there is a greater risk of vulnerable workers e.g. homeworkers, migrant workers |
| Freedom of Association - continue working with global Trade Unions such as the ITGLWF and TUC to provide necessary background information for suppliers in adopting an open and positive attitude to worker organising | |
Achieved |
| Living Wage research - continue our work in this challenging issue and begin to move beyond our pilot programmes to roll out the learning through our supply chain | |
Ongoing. See page 17 for more information about our work in this area |
| Roll out worker interview training module to global team | |
Achieved. See page 16 for more information about our work in this area |
| In collaboration with an NGO in Southern China to support a trial to pilot a worker helpline | |
Achieved. The worker helpline is established in 9 factories and we are continuing to monitor the outcomes |
| Develop/scope the ETI Purchasing Practices project - to engage with external consultants to undertake the research phase | |
Achieved. See page 17 for more information about our work in this area |
| Support regional team strategies that address issues prevalent to each region in addition to global team strategy | |
Achieved. The regional teams have been given the time to identify and develop specific initiatives that affect their region |
| Continue to invest and expand global COP team | |
Achieved. Global team increased to 37 |
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