COMPLIANCE & SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY DEPARTMENT
FROM THE CORNER... 2016 has officially come to an end, and as we look back we can only feel proud of the groundwork done and the achievements that came with it. With our focus always on continuous improvement, we take a moment to revel in the accomplishments, and then move on to what 2017 has in store. 2016...in review What a year! Our Compliance & Social Sustainability Department came to fruition with manpower expansion, training programmes, and various worker-focused initiatives. We welcomed Jason Tan in Lesotho on board, who had done tremendous work in getting the Worker Well-Being Programme off its feet. At the same time, various other community outreach projects had been implemented; with superb support from Taipei headquarters and the various factories. New cleaner production programmes have been initiated in both Vietnam and Cambodia factories, and all factories have enrolled into similar worker well-being training programmes by external service providers, like HerProject, CARE and Life Centre. In further pursuit of partnerships, we have also joined the Race To The Top project in Vietnam—to name a few of the many partnerships undertaken in 2016 with our buyers and external collaborators. The Compliance and Social Sustainability Department in cooperation with the Executive Committee have developed and approved a Performance Management Process (maturity model) for the factories—a tool to take them to ownership by 2020. 2017...in short 2017 will definitely outperform 2016 and we are excited about our upcoming programmes: internal assessment, expansion of our worker-focused programmes, dedicated in-house training programmes for both workers and mid-level management; support for the Higg Index and cleaner production projects; and more community outreach programmes. Our approach is that of marginal gains to allow for small wins accumulating into success, continuous improvement and partnering with our buyers for their input and support. »»» Jean-Pierre (JP) Pellissier Director, Compliance & Social Sustainability
COMMUNITY OUTREACH | LESOTHO
REACHING OUT AT CHRISTMAS After taking a few small detours, i.e. we got lost, we arrive at our destination, greeted by running kids at the gate. They run along the cars and the truck, and once we start offloading, they eagerly participate in the job. They are laughing, and we make jokes with them. I look around the facility, which I am told we do not refer to as an orphanage, but as a “care facility or care centre”. “Not all the kids here are orphans. A big group of them come from families where they cannot be supported. They come here for a better life. So we don’t like the word “orphanage” as there is just too much negative stigma attached to it,” I’m told by the superintendent of the care facility. This one, like twenty others, are part of Nien Hsing Lesotho’s outreach before Christmas to donate clothes to these young ones and contribute towards their Christmas stockings. The ages at the care facilities range anything from the newly born up to high school—and we’ve got something for each one. “We’ve taken it upon ourselves to give this donation to those that are not as privileged as others,” says Ricky Chang, Administration Manager at the Nien Hsing Group Lesotho. “We hope that with this donation we can bring cheer to all of these kids during this Christmas time.” Speaking to the Human Resources manager from Formosa Textile, Justice Nhtlabo adds, “These facilities do a great job. This is such a great opportunity for our group. I’m looking forward to next year and coming back and doing more.” As the rain falls gently outside, the donations are presented with the support of the Ministry of Social Development. We all walk away with a feeling of hope and anticipation for 2017, already coming up with ideas on how we can go beyond these initiatives and making even a bigger change. In the end, there is nothing more rewarding than the spontaneous smile of a child to wish you a Merry Christmas. »»» For a photo journal of the event, click HERE.
SUSTAINABILITY | ENGAGEMENT | VIETNAM
JOINING THE RACE TO THE TOP For people outside Vietnam, the term RttT may be a foreign one, but ask any business within the Vietnam apparel industry, and they have surely heard of Race to the Top (RttT), or even are currently a member to this initiative. However, explaining to an outsider what RttT is about can be rather tricky and not clear off the bat. In short, the Race to the Top concept aims to promote both environment and social sustainability, by brining different stakeholders together through various programmes and looking at initiatives—such as sustainable production methods and practices—that may accomplish this goal. This concept is country exclusive, and the aim is to have all factories in Vietnam’s apparel industry join the programme and work towards a sustainable tomorrow. The Nien Hsing Group Vietnam is proud to support and join this programme, and though we understand that with this comes extra work for us, we are encouraged by the efforts that not only reach out to the communities and country, but also to our production. In addition to this, all Nien Hsing factories in Vietnam are under the Better Work Vietnam project. »»» For more information on Race to the Top and IDH (the sustainable trade initiative), please follow these links: Race to the Top, Vietnam IDH
ENVIRONMENT | CLEANER PRODUCTION | VIETNAM
PARTNERSHIP FOR CLEANER TEXTILE Water savings, energy savings, avoidance of GHG (greenhouse gasses), investments, less wastewater and savings to factory—these are the 6 pillars on which the Parnership for Cleaner Textile (PaCT) are based on. PaCT has embarked upon a ground-breaking partnership with Levi Strauss & Co and IFC to develop a global program aimed at ensuring environmental sustainability. Combining the strengths of these two key players the partnership leverages PaCT’s extensive experience in successfully implementing Cleaner Production measures in more than 160 textile factories in Bangladesh. Conceived initially for Bangladesh, the programme is also rolling out to India, Sri Lanka and Vietnam as part of the pilot project with Levis Strauss & Co. For Nien Hsing this means the joining of our facility in the district of Ninh Binh, Vietnam to PaCT. Having enrolled freshly in September, the programme has already entered its first phase with metrics collection and initial inspections. “PaCT is assisting our factory at identifying methods to improve our production in terms of sustainability by exploring ideas to consume fewer resources. We have just started and it’s quite a steep learning curve, as it involves many technical aspects that are new to us, but we are confident that through this learning process we can improve our own ability and operations,” Cesar Kang, Factory Director. For more information on PaCT vist their website: Partnership for Cleaner Textile (PaCT) Currently a number of factories in the Nien Hsing Group are part of energy efficiency projects in partnership with VF and IFC. All factories in the group implement waste management practices to reduce, reuse, recycle and recover. »»»
COMPLIANCE
CHECKS & BALANCES INTERNAL ASSESSMENTS From January 2017 the Nien Hsing Group is implementing an internal assessment standard to be carried out at all its facilities 3 times per year in order to improve audit readiness and assist factories in improving their performance level. The first 2 of these audits occur in Q1 and Q2 respectively and are strictly internal. The focus is to identify failures and weaknesses through the assessments, enabling factories to improve upon these deficiencies. The assessments are carried about by qualified personnel from the Compliance and Social Sustainability Department (CSSD) upon which a preliminary report is released. This report is discussed at corporate level and upon approval, factories are to draft improvement plans to address the findings. The third and final assessment is carried out late Q3. The findings of this assessment is disclosed to all buyers and relevant stakeholders. Factories are at all times responsible for their compliance status. Various training and programmes have been implemented to improve in-house ability in regards to inspections. However, to ensure transparency and effective checks and balances, the CSSD is responsible for official internal assessments. The assessors from the CSSD have extensive experience in the field and are highly competent in this function. To support this requirement, additional training is provided in Q2 2017 by NQA on internal auditing for ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001; supplemented later by a NOSA Auditor Course. It is paramount that our internal assessors are competent in their duties as well as transparent. Numerous buyers have indicated their support to this initiative and will also validate the assessors’ performance later in 2017 / early 2018. A project document will be disseminated by end January to all interested parties on the internal assessment procedure. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT PROCESS The internal assessment project is part of the company’s Performance Management Process (PMP)—a maturity model that has been developed to assist factories in performance improvement. The PMP incorporates the key concepts of marginal gains and continuous improvement. Download a copy of the initial PMP Concept Document HERE. »»»
WORKER–FOCUSED PROGRAMMES | LESOTHO
BLURBS FROM THE MOUNTAIN KINGDOM (LESOTHO) 25-YEAR REUNION It was a great year in terms of celebration in Lesotho, as our factory C&Y Garments turned the clock forward to 25-years of operations. The event was celebrated in style with a ceremony where all workers who had been with the company from the very beginning were awarded a service trophy, as well as a nice cash bonus. Related Media: Photo Gallery | 25-Years and AGOA | Award Ceremony OHS ATTACHMENT PARTNERSHIP In March 2016 we partnered with a local college in Lesotho that provides diploma courses in Occupational Health and Safety. Students who complete the training at the school undergo a 6-month attachment at our factories (C&Y Garments, Nien Hsing International, Global Garments, and Formosa Textile). Upon successful completion of the attachment programme they graduate from the school and receive their diploma. During their attachment, students are trained on site in risk assessment, inspection and housekeeping. They are given exposure to the industry and are involved in various projects, including worker well-being. The next batch of attachments will commence late January 2017. The school also intends to extend its curriculum to include a Health and Safety Degree later in 2017. More on Montech: Facebook | Interview | Jason at the Graduation Ceremony HIV/AIDS TESTING & SERVICES Nien Hsing Group Lesotho has partnered with various NGOs in the continuous provision of HIV/AIDS services at the factories. This includes an ongoing testing programme whereby service providers come to the factory every 3 months and provide workers with opportunities for testing and counselling. In addition, other concerns particular to the Basotho people are also addressed by the service providers, such as diabetes and hypertension. SUPPORT FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT Our local team has reached out to the Ministry of Social Development in support of their initiatives and discussion of possible cooperation in 2017. »»»
COMPLIANCE & SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY DEPARTMENT
PROMISES, PROMISES... At the beginning of 2016, we set out a number of objectives for the year. They seemed a bit presumptuous at the time, and we knew we had our work cut out for us. Yet, the challenges that came with it brought great rewards and improvements. For the coming year forward, the Compliance and Social Sustainability Department would like to share the following main focus areas for 2017. capacity building—focused in-house training for both workers and mid-level management (local and expatriate); on topics such as communication, housekeeping, risk control and PPE; collaborative training platforms—partnerships with stakeholders on the development of training that will benefit not only the Nien Hsing Group, but to be shared across the industry to all interested factories; community projects—close cooperation with local NGOs in the various countries, other external service providers and local authorities on the identification of areas where the company can assist in social development; cleaner production—identifying possible opportunities for factories currently not in cleaner production initiatives, and borrowing/implementing relevant findings from sister factories for implementation across-the-board; performance requirement standardization—continuing development of the company’s own in-house guidebook on requirements for all aspects of compliance and social sustainability, i.e. OSE (operational and sustainability engagement), SLL (social, labour & legal), OHS (occupational health and safety), EEP (environment and energy programmes) and SEC (security); reporting standardization—developing and establishing the foundation for global accepted reporting standards, such as GRI; worker-focused programmes—additional programmes implemented at factories focusing on worker activities and education, in particular on how these benefits could directly impact their families and communities. So, there are a lot in the pipeline! [download our Objectives 2017 HERE] Through our newsletters, email updates and social media we will keep you posted on their developments. »»»
SOCIAL MEDIA
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