PPB June 2016

forms such as with goods, bonds or alcohol

“by providing for regular payment of

wages, the fixing of minimum wage levels,

and the settlement of unpaid wages in case

of employer insolvency.” Under the

Protection of Wages Convention, 1949

“the term wages means remuneration or

earnings, however designated or calculated,

capable of being expressed in terms of

money and fixed by mutual agreement or

by national laws or regulations, which are

payable in virtue of a written or unwritten

contract of employment by an employer to

an employed person for work done or to

be done or for services rendered or to be

rendered.”

What it means to you:

This principle of a

code of conduct plainly states that an

organization complies with all applicable

wage, work hours, hiring, benefits, and

overtime laws and regulations. In the

absence of law in a particular location

relating to product safety, labor, employ-

ment, environment or working condi-

tions, the spirit and intent of these poli-

cies shall be met.

WORKPLACE CONDITIONS

The ILO

principles state that “workers should be

protected from sickness, disease and injury

arising from their employment.” To address

this and improve working conditions for

workers, the ILO has adopted more than

40 standards and codes of practice in order

to deal directly with occupational safety

and health issues.

What it means to you:

Inclusion of this

principle in a code of conduct communi-

cates that your company will provide a

safe, healthy and secure workplace by

abiding by all applicable laws and regula-

tions for safety and health. Additionally,

proper sanitation, lighting, ventilation

and fire safety protection will be provided.

ENVIRONMENT

The UN Global

Compact, using principles provided by the

1992 Rio Declaration, states that “business

has the responsibility to ensure that activi-

ties within their own operations do not

cause harm to the environment. Society

expects business to be good actors in the

community. Business gains its legitimacy

through meeting the needs of society, and

increasingly society is expressing a clear

need for more environmentally sustainable

practices. The FLA maintains that

“employers shall adopt responsible meas-

ures to mitigate negative impacts that the

workplace has on the environment.” Find

more information at

www.ppai.org

under

Inside PPAI/Corporate Responsibility tabs

and at

www.unglobalcompact.org.

What it means to you:

Organizations are

expected to abide by all applicable envi-

ronmental laws and regulations. In addi-

tion to existing laws and regulations, this

may include expectations to make all rea-

sonable efforts to manage your company’s

environmental footprint by minimizing

the adverse impact on the environment

resulting from manufacturing and distri-

bution processes. This includes managing

energy, water and waste systems.

SUBCONTRACTORS AND SOURCES

This principle addresses an organization’s

supply chain and business partners.

Implementing best practices within one’s

own facilities is only the start. The busi-

ness partners that a company chooses to

conduct business with, whether directly or

indirectly, reflect an organization’s values

and commitment to upholding the values

of the code of conduct. For example, the

UN code of conduct explicitly states that

“the UN expects that suppliers ensure that

this Code of Conduct is communicated to

the employees and subcontractors of all

suppliers, and that it is done in the local

language and in a manner that is under-

stood by all.” Additionally, “the UN

expects that its suppliers encourage and

work with their own suppliers and subcon-

tractors to ensure that they also strive to

meet the principles of this Code of

Conduct or equivalent set of principles.”

What it means to you:

The expectation of

this principle is to require all businesses

that support your business as subcontrac-

tors, manufacturers or sources of goods

comply with all of the same policies stated

in the organization’s code of conduct and

ethical behavior policies. In short, organ-

izations must have visibility and control

of all subcontractors and suppliers within

the supply chain in order to ensure true

compliance with all applicable national

and international laws. Find more infor-

mation at www.wipo.int.

PRODUCT SAFETY

Product safety regu-

lations are increasing on federal, state and

international levels. As a result, it is essen-

tial that the industry as a whole recognize

and understand the importance of product

safety, and every company should develop a

basic awareness of the importance and

requirements of product safety. When regu-

lations exist, compliance is required by law.

It is vital that you communicate frankly

with your promotional products partners to

ensure you select the right products for your

specific application. This principle commu-

nicates your organization’s commitment to

complying with all applicable laws and reg-

ulations regarding the safety of products

you sell, and that you will meet applicable,

recognized voluntary industry standards for

your products and processes. Find more

information at

www.ppai.org

under the

Inside PPAI/Corporate Responsibility tabs.

72 •

PPB

• JUNE 2016

THINK

PRODUCT

RESPONSIBILITY

“Every company should

develop a basic aware-

ness of the importance

and requirements of

product safety.”