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Business and Human Rights: a resource website

 

  Supply chain / "fair trade" / procurement policies & practices 

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NEW (recent additions to this section; top item is most recent addition)

UC opposes anti-sweatshop bills [USA] - The University of California shocked anti-sweatshop activists Tuesday by opposing bills that would require state contractors to certify that they do not use sweatshop labor. The pair of nearly identical bills, AB 1557 and SB 578, were passed by the state Legislature on Tuesday. (Adam Foxman, Daily Bruin, 1 May 2003)

Kimberley Process still in process - Progress made, but key issues remain - Representatives of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) attending the First Plenary Meeting of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) welcomed international commitment to take additional effective steps to break the link between diamonds and human rights violations and conflict in Africa. However, governments failed to take action on an element critical to the credibility of the Scheme - the need for regular, independent monitoring of all participants, to ensure that the process is not subject to abuse. (joint press release by Action Aid [UK and Sierra Leone], Amnesty International [International Secretariat], Cenadep [DRC], Fatal Transactions [The Netherlands], Global Witness [UK], Network Movement for Justice and Development [Sierra Leone], Oxfam International, Partnership Africa Canada [Canada] World Vision [USA], 30 Apr. 2003)

'Blood diamond' deadline set - The international group trying to stop the trafficking in "blood diamonds" has given countries until the end of July to join the effort or be excluded from the legal diamond trade. Representatives from 70 countries meeting in Johannesburg agreed to set a deadline of 31 July for nations to sign up for the certification system known as the Kimberley Process...But pressure groups remain sceptical, arguing the system lacks independent scrutiny and contains loopholes which could allow terrorist groups to fund their activities through diamond smuggling. (BBC News, 30 Apr. 2003)

Coffee-makers' huge profits leave a bitter taste -...Aid and fair trade organisations accuse the world's major coffee roasters of making huge profits out of impoverished growers in developing countries, whose returns are a fraction of retail prices. They say the price paid for green coffee is so low that desperate families cannot support themselves...Oxfam advocacy co-ordinator Jeff Atkinson said the world's major coffee makers - Kraft (Maxwell House, Jacobs), Procter and Gamble (Folgers), Sara Lee (Moccona) and, to a lesser extent, Nestle (Nescafe) - had done little to improve the growers' lot. (Stathi Paxinos, The Age [Australia], 28 Apr. 2003)

The Answer to the Coffee Crisis? Farmers Want Fair Price, Kraft Says Increase Demand - Calls for fair prices and Fair Trade Certified coffee by social investors, coffee farmers, and Oxfam go unheeded by Kraft. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 25 Apr. 2003)

Analysis: Can human rights become part of mainstream purchasing processes? - Hilary Sutcliffe outlines the key obstacles to the adoption of human rights as a principle in purchasing processes. (Hilary Sutcliffe, Director of Shared View, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 25 Apr. 2003)

Oxfam: Kraft Foods Refutes Accountability and Shows Lack of Leadership in Addressing Global Coffee Crisis Affecting 25 Million Coffee Farmers (Oxfam America, 22 Apr. 2003)

Office Depot Announces New Environmental Procurement Initiatives (Office Depot, 22 Apr. 2003)

Corporations as Good Global Citizens - Governments have to encourage better corporate behavior at home and abroad -...Some of the world's most prominent firms have been sued in American, Australian, Canadian, Belgian, and British courts for allegedly aiding and abetting human rights violations by governments of developing countries. Other stakeholders have used proxy fights, consumer boycotts, or public pressure to ensure that multinationals adopt corporate social responsibility strategies...Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Canada are doing the most to promote global corporate social responsibility. [refers to UK and Netherlands governments promoting OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises; refers to Canada's standards for ethical procurement by the government] (Susan Ariel Aaronson & James Reeves, Global CSR Policies Project at Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, Kenan Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina, in YaleGlobal, 8 Apr. 2003)

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Websites:

Associated British Foods: Ethical Procurement - ABF seeks to develop relationships with supplier companies consistent with the basic principles as set out above, and specifically with respect to human rights and conditions of employment. Where supplier audits show shortcomings in any of these areas we will strive to encourage a programme of improvement leading to compliance. (Associated British Foods)

Environmentally Preferable Purchasing - Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP) is a federal-wide program that encourages and assists Executive agencies in the purchasing of environmentally preferable products and services. (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)

Ethical Trading Initiative

Fair Trade Federation: association of fair trade wholesalers, retailers & producers

Fair Trade Resource Network

Labor Law - Labor Law is a unique Internet database of detailed labor law reports and supply chain compliance resources [a paid service for subscribers] (Business for Social Responsibility)

UNICEF: Procurement Policies - Child labour - Land mines

Other materials:

2003:

UC opposes anti-sweatshop bills [USA] - The University of California shocked anti-sweatshop activists Tuesday by opposing bills that would require state contractors to certify that they do not use sweatshop labor. The pair of nearly identical bills, AB 1557 and SB 578, were passed by the state Legislature on Tuesday. (Adam Foxman, Daily Bruin, 1 May 2003)

Kimberley Process still in process - Progress made, but key issues remain - Representatives of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) attending the First Plenary Meeting of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) welcomed international commitment to take additional effective steps to break the link between diamonds and human rights violations and conflict in Africa. However, governments failed to take action on an element critical to the credibility of the Scheme - the need for regular, independent monitoring of all participants, to ensure that the process is not subject to abuse. (joint press release by Action Aid [UK and Sierra Leone], Amnesty International [International Secretariat], Cenadep [DRC], Fatal Transactions [The Netherlands], Global Witness [UK], Network Movement for Justice and Development [Sierra Leone], Oxfam International, Partnership Africa Canada [Canada] World Vision [USA], 30 Apr. 2003)

'Blood diamond' deadline set - The international group trying to stop the trafficking in "blood diamonds" has given countries until the end of July to join the effort or be excluded from the legal diamond trade. Representatives from 70 countries meeting in Johannesburg agreed to set a deadline of 31 July for nations to sign up for the certification system known as the Kimberley Process...But pressure groups remain sceptical, arguing the system lacks independent scrutiny and contains loopholes which could allow terrorist groups to fund their activities through diamond smuggling. (BBC News, 30 Apr. 2003)

Coffee-makers' huge profits leave a bitter taste -...Aid and fair trade organisations accuse the world's major coffee roasters of making huge profits out of impoverished growers in developing countries, whose returns are a fraction of retail prices. They say the price paid for green coffee is so low that desperate families cannot support themselves...Oxfam advocacy co-ordinator Jeff Atkinson said the world's major coffee makers - Kraft (Maxwell House, Jacobs), Procter and Gamble (Folgers), Sara Lee (Moccona) and, to a lesser extent, Nestle (Nescafe) - had done little to improve the growers' lot. (Stathi Paxinos, The Age [Australia], 28 Apr. 2003)

The Answer to the Coffee Crisis? Farmers Want Fair Price, Kraft Says Increase Demand - Calls for fair prices and Fair Trade Certified coffee by social investors, coffee farmers, and Oxfam go unheeded by Kraft. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 25 Apr. 2003)

Analysis: Can human rights become part of mainstream purchasing processes? - Hilary Sutcliffe outlines the key obstacles to the adoption of human rights as a principle in purchasing processes. (Hilary Sutcliffe, Director of Shared View, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 25 Apr. 2003)

Oxfam: Kraft Foods Refutes Accountability and Shows Lack of Leadership in Addressing Global Coffee Crisis Affecting 25 Million Coffee Farmers (Oxfam America, 22 Apr. 2003)

Office Depot Announces New Environmental Procurement Initiatives (Office Depot, 22 Apr. 2003)

Corporations as Good Global Citizens - Governments have to encourage better corporate behavior at home and abroad -...Some of the world's most prominent firms have been sued in American, Australian, Canadian, Belgian, and British courts for allegedly aiding and abetting human rights violations by governments of developing countries. Other stakeholders have used proxy fights, consumer boycotts, or public pressure to ensure that multinationals adopt corporate social responsibility strategies...Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Canada are doing the most to promote global corporate social responsibility. [refers to UK and Netherlands governments promoting OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises; refers to Canada's standards for ethical procurement by the government] (Susan Ariel Aaronson & James Reeves, Global CSR Policies Project at Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, Kenan Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina, in YaleGlobal, 8 Apr. 2003)

ETHIOPIA: Coffee drinkers urged to support growers - Two British Members of Parliament (MP) on Thursday urged coffee drinkers to use consumer power to get impoverished coffee growers a better deal. (UN Integrated Regional Information Networks, 4 Apr. 2003)

PepsiCo Shareowners Will Address the Business Risks of Water Scarcity - The SEC is requiring PepsiCo's to allow its shareowners to vote on a resolution regarding the business risks of water scarcity...Concern about water supplies is seeping to investors who own stock in companies that use large amounts of water. A group of PepsiCo shareowners have filed a resolution asking the company to report on the business risk of water use throughout its supply chain. The resolution also asks the company to disclose its "current policies and procedures for mitigating the impact of operations on local communities in areas of water scarcity." (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 2 Apr. 2003)

Interview with Digital4Sight - Digital4sight is a global action research programme designed to help guide companies make the strategic transition to being a values-based enterprise; their research has uncovered some interesting findings for companies. [refers to company reporting on social issues; supply chain; transparency] (interview with Phil Dwyer and Anthony Williams of Digital4Sight, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 2 Apr. 2003)

The UK Corporate Sustainability Reporting Awards [refers to The Co-operative Bank, Shell,  BT Group, Risk and Policy Analysts Ltd., Unilever, Scottish Power, Canary Wharf Group, Best Foot Forward Ltd, FRC Group, Co-operative Insurance Society, Traidcraft, British American Tobacco] (Tobias Webb, Ethical Corporation Magazine, 25 Mar. 2003)

Working conditions: Results of the monitoring of Chinese garments suppliers - The pilot project on independent monitoring set up by the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) and by Migros, Switcher and Veillon makes today public the reports on its follow-up visits to Chinese suppliers of these three Swiss companies (Press release of the Clean Clothes Campaign in Switzerland and the companies Migros, Switcher and Veillon, 19 Mar. 2003)

Yale Students Will Sip Fair-Traded Coffee Exclusively [USA] - As of next fall, only "Fair Trade"-certified coffee will be served in the dining halls of Yale University. (Yale News Release, 18 Mar. 2003)

Global Compact Participants Implementing Host of Supply Chain Initiatives - Reflecting a growing trend within the Global Compact initiative, Tweezerman, a leading manufacturer of personal-care products, announced that it plans to implement a new supplier agreement that mandates adherence to the nine principles of the Global Compact...Other companies that have submitted related examples [actively incorporating the Global Compact principles into their supply chains] to the Global Compact Learning Forum are: Petro-Canada, William E. Connor & Associates, Bayer AG, Li & Fung (Trading) Ltd., Ericsson, Robert Stephen Holdings, OneNest, and Engineers India Limited (U.N. Global Compact, 13 Mar. 2003)

Ethical Supply Chain Management - the story so far - Some of the standards focus on core labour and human rights issues (e.g. Ethical Trading Initiative or SA8000), while others are beginning to tackle wider issues such as terms of trading and criteria for smallholders...Companies are beginning to “green” their supply chain by working on environmental initiatives with their suppliers. [refers to McDonald’s, Cosmair (a subsidiary of L'Oreal), Ford]. (Julian Roche, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 6 Mar. 2003)

Sale of Fairtrade products doubles [UK] - Sales of goods that promise a better deal for farmers in developing countries have more than doubled in three years, it was announced at the weekend...Sainsbury's now sells around 1 million Fairtrade bananas a week, and has own-brand coffee, tea, and chocolate that carry the Fairtrade certification mark. Last November the Co-op supermarket chain announced it was switching all its own-brand chocolate to Fairtrade. (David Brown, Guardian [UK], 3 Mar. 2003)

new book: Buying into the Environment Experiences, Opportunities and Potential for Eco-procurement -...Many initiatives have been undertaken in OECD countries, most successfully in Japan and Denmark where green public purchasing has been proven to be workable and highly effective, while, in other countries, city municipalities have successfully pioneered the development of sophisticated public environmental purchasing policies...The book, organised under the auspices of the International Council on Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) analyses national approaches already tested, and provides in-depth surveys on the pioneer cities such as Hamburg, Malmö and Zürich...The most relevant product groups for eco-procurement such as construction, transport, energy, information technology, furniture and food. are also analysed. (Edited by Christoph Erdmenger, International Council on Local Environmental Initiatives, Mar. 2003)

Retail therapy - Awareness of how and where goods are produced has soared - and so has the fair trade movement -...Now there are more than 100 products, ranging from tea, coffee and bananas to sugar, wine, honey, fruits, juices, snacks and biscuits, chilli peppers and meat. Coming next are fair trade clothes and textiles, and fair trade footballs...To go truly mainstream, though, fair trade must occupy more than a remote shelf in a supermarket. There are the first signs that that is happening as the Co-op and Safeway supermarkets start their own fair trade lines. (John Vidal, Guardian [UK], 26 Feb. 2003)

Workers demonstrate against US fast-food giant - Activists in the United States are launching a mass demonstration against US fast-food giant Taco Bell on 24 February, protesting its tolerance of labour exploitation by its suppliers...Taco Bell uses tomatoes "produced in what can only be described as sweatshop conditions", the Coalition says...Anti-Slavery International supports the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' call for a boycott of Taco Bell. (Anti-Slavery International, 24 Feb. 2003)

"Human Rights and Corporate Accountability" (speech by Mary Robinson, Director of the Ethical Globalization Initiative, former U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, at The Fund for Peace - Human Rights and Business Roundtable, 19 Feb. 2003)

UK Paper Companies Supporting Indonesian Rainforest Destruction - Investigations by Friends of the Earth have revealed that UK paper merchants are still buying paper from Indonesian companies responsible for rainforest destruction, illegal logging and human rights abuses [says paper merchant David John is buying paper from Asia Pulp & Paper; Ovenden Papers of Epping, Rosefox of Preston, Frederick Johnson of Enfield and the South Wales Paper Company are buying from Indonesian paper manufacturer APRIL]...James McNaughton, one of the UK's biggest paper merchant groups, recently announced its decision to stop buying Indonesian paper until it can be independently proven that it comes from a non-destructive source. Friends of the Earth is calling on all paper merchants to do the same. (Friends of the Earth, 10 Feb. 2003)

Sweat-Free School Purchasing Resolutions: a New Trend? [USA] -...The school board [Minneapolis Board of Education] voted unanimously to develop a "sweat-free" policy for the purchase of all athletic equipment and apparel...The Los Angeles Unified School District unanimously passed a similar resolution in January, which followed on the heels of a sweat-free measure passed by the City Council in October 2002. Twenty separate school districts within the state of New York have implemented sweat-free purchasing policies within the last year and a half, and the New York City Council passed a resolution in 2001 mandating that the city develop a sweatshop free policy for the purchase of all city uniforms. (Ben Plimpton, CorpWatch, 6 Feb. 2003)

Littlewoods shuns ethical trade [UK] - Christian Aid is profoundly disappointed by the decision of Littlewoods, the high street clothing retailer, to leave the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), a voluntary code of conduct set up to help improve labour standards in poor countries. (Christian Aid, 3 Feb. 2003)

But is it any more than a box-ticking exercise? Campaigner and writer Marc Lopatin questions whether developed nations are ready to pay more to improve standards -...Companies that outsource production are not exactly benevolent agents of sustainable development brimming with enthusiasm for respecting labour rights and environmental protection...Is it surprising then that some Southern-based NGOs regard CSR as a hollow project to deflect attention from unfair trade rules and bullying on the part of inward investors? (Marc Lopatin, Observer [UK], 2 Feb. 2003)

Can't say fairer than that - Once a minority cause, Fairtrade is now becoming mainstream, writes Simon Caulkin [refers to Nestlé, Cafédirect, Co-op supermarket] (Simon Caulkin, Observer [UK], 2 Feb. 2003)

Home Depot adopts new wood purchasing policy [USA] - Home improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. said it will only buy wood products from suppliers committed to environmentally friendly logging and lumber practices. (Karen Jacobs, Reuters, 6 Jan. 2003)

2002:

No Sweat on Campus - Growing number of Canadian Universities reject sweatshop gear (Canadian Labour Congress, 13 Dec. 2002)

Press release - Pilot project of the Clean Clothes Campaign (Switzerland): Findings of the follow up visits to the Indian suppliers - The Pilot project on independent monitoring set up in 2000 by the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) and by Migros, Switcher and Veillon to monitor compliance with the Code of Conduct has issued its first report. (Clean Clothes Campaign Switzerland, 12 Dec. 2002)

The Guardian & The Observer "Business and Society: Corporate social responsibility - policy into practice" conference - London - 6 Feb. 2003 [includes sessions on human rights, environment, development, labour rights, codes of conduct, supply chain] (Guardian [UK] and Observer [UK], sponsored by National Grid Transco) [added to this site on 2 Dec. 2002]

The Co-op switches to Fairtrade chocolate in move to fight slavery - Anti-Slavery International welcomes the Co-op's announcement that it will switch its entire own-brand chocolate bars to Fairtrade chocolate in 2,400 stores across the UK, bringing fairly traded cocoa firmly into the mainstream market. (Anti-Slavery International, 26 Nov. 2002)

I pick cocoa beans but I've never tasted chocolate [Ghana]...But Day Chocolate is different. It buys all its cocoa through Fairtrade...Kuapa Kokoo is the only cocoa-buying company in Ghana which integrates women's projects into its business...To date, there have been 504 loans from Kuapa Kokoo to help women set up businesses in 22 cocoa-farming communities. (Jill Foster, Mirror [UK], 5 Nov. 2002)

Elements of Style: Raging Bulls - High Fashion and Exploitation -...Pinault-Printemps-Redoute (PPR), a $27 billion conglomerate which owns, along with glittery businesses like Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen, and Gucci, the decidedly unglamorous Brylane, a catalog warehouse in Indianapolis that is facing fierce management opposition in its struggle to unionize. UNITE also wants to put pressure on PPR to stop using sweatshop labor in the thousands of factories it has contracts with around the world. (Lynn Yaeger, Village Voice, 16-22 Oct. 2002)

Increasing standards in the supply chain - Michael Allen suggests that sustainable “supply chainge” requires an inside-out approach to transforming workplace culture -...Codes remain vital for setting a basic floor of rights and standards covering such issues as health and safety, working time and fair treatment of workers. But a growing number of global firms recognise the need to move the agenda beyond compliance and develop sustainable approaches to supply chain labor issues (Michael Allen, Director of External Affairs with the Global Alliance for Workers and Communities, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 15 Oct. 2002)

US urged to wake up to "coffee with a conscience" -...fair trade beans are slowly making inroads into some of America's favourite coffee emporiums, with them being sold in some 10,000 outlets nationally including retailers such as Starbucks, the world's largest speciality coffee company, the supermarket chain Safeway and the food conglomerate Sara Lee. (Ros Davidson, Reuters, 15 Oct. 2002)

Wood-Door Maker Gains SmartWood Certification [USA] - Iowa-based VT Industries, manufacturer of architectural wood doors, has qualified as a provider of SmartWood-certified wood doors, the Forest Stewardship Council recently announced. The chain-of-custody certification was awarded by the Rainforest Alliance, an FSC-accredited certifier. (GreenBiz.com, 8 Oct. 2002) 

Peru jungle farmers raise cups to fair trade coffee -...Farmers in Alto Incariado have joined up with the local La Florida Cooperative selling coffee carrying the "fair trade" label - a seal guaranteeing consumers that producers comply with conditions like a "decent wage" for farmers, the right to unionize, environmental standards and shunning child labor. [refers to fair trade coffee generally, and to Starbucks, Costa/Whitbread PLC, Cafe Direct, Max Havelaar] (Missy Ryan, Reuters, 27 Sep. 2002)

International Starbucks protest comes to town [Berkeley, USA] - A dozen protesters picketed outside the Oxford Street Starbucks Wednesday as part of an international campaign urging the chain to buy more "Fair Trade" coffee from farmers....A Starbucks representative at the protest said the company has made significant progress on the issue, selling bags of Fair Trade coffee to customers since October 2000 and brewing it once a month in stores since May 2002. (David Scharfenberg, Berkeley Daily Planet, 26 Sep. 2002)

Analyis: Values-based supply chain management: Whose values, whose benefit? Toby Kent examines the effects of values-based supply chain management on agricultural producers and workers in developing economies. (Toby Kent, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 26 Sep. 2002)

Caught in the Supply Chain: Strengthening Rights for Women Workers -...BSR has conducted a study of the general and reproductive health needs of women in global supply chains. The study – focused on China, India, Indonesia and Mexico – details the health needs faced by women working in the supply chains serving global companies. It also profiles innovative projects to improve women’s health as well as partnerships between companies and local and international NGOs. (Aron Cramer, Business for Social Responsibility, Sep. 2002)

Bosses 'not doing enough to limit impact on environment' [UK] - Business leaders are not taking steps to reduce the impact of their activities on the environment, according to new research...Seventy-nine percent believe they should measure the environmental impact of their suppliers, although only 32% would change suppliers who were found to be damaging the air, land and water. (Ananova, 22 Aug. 2002)

Companies feel the pressures of Corporate Social Responsibility -...a growing number of large, quoted companies in Britain are looking at their suppliers’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies as closely as their own...His remarks, though in the context of the UK, have considerable significance for the world scenario and India as well, where labour and environmental standards are going to be an important factor in doing business...“It’s early days for this kind of screening, but even now, companies like Sainsbury and British Airways are asking their suppliers for information on environmental policies and employment.” (Business Standard [India], 15 Aug. 2002)

Fair trade coffee buzz gaining momentum (Missy Ryan, Reuters, 7 Aug. 2002) 

Ethical sourcing codes – the answer to supply chain sustainability concerns? Sarah Roberts looks at implementing ethical sourcing codes and the challenges of gaining certification [refers to clothing and footwear sectors; logging/forest products sector including firms Sappi, Mondi; building materials/do-it-yourself sector including firms Homebase, B&Q; chocolate industry] (Sarah Roberts, National Centre for Business and Sustainability, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 1 Aug. 2002)

Computer Sector's Social and Environmental Performance Needs Upgrade - A recent report from Oekom Research identifies shortcomings in the corporate responsibility performance of IT and computer companies, particularly concerning social issues...Hewlett Packard topped the group with an overall grade of B-. Apple was close behind, also earning a B-. NEC came in third with a C+. Other companies assessed included Dell, Fujitsu, IBM, and Sun Microsystems. Gateway did not provide any information..."One outcome of the survey is that supply chain management is not satisfactory," said Ms. Bohle. "None of the companies has implemented detailed measures to monitor basic labor conditions of its suppliers, for example in terms of local working hours or wages. Furthermore, the companies assessed have not implemented measures to assess the human rights situation in non-OECD countries." (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 31 July 2002)

Ethical Corporation Retail Supply Chain Conference to explore managing sustainability in European retailing - London, UK [25-27 Sep. 2002] (Ethical Corporation Magazine, 23 July 2002)

Analysis: Key drivers for sustainable corporate supply chains - Roger Cowe looks at the principal issues for global retailers with regard to their supply chains and concludes that inaction is a risky approach (Roger Cowe, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 22 July 2002)

Analysis: A novel labour compliance tool – is it for your company? Jon Entine reviews Business for Social Responsibility’s new Labour Law Database and is impressed...[T]his well-conceived database...provides a central repository on the critical minutiae of labour standards, vetted by none other than Baker & McKenzie. (Jon Entine, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 18 July 2002)

Introduction of a House Resolution urging the government to purchase fair trade certified coffee [USA] - Today Rep. Pete Stark introduced a House [U.S. House of Representatives] Resolution expressing the sense of Congress that all branches of the Federal Government should limit purchases of coffee to those suppliers that are certified to have paid coffee farmers a fair price for their products. (Office of Congressman Pete Stark, 17 July 2002)

Analysis: Taking an effective management approach to supply chain sustainability - Liz Crosbie looks at the best methods of managing successful implementation from product sourcing to managing suppliers and stakeholders (Liz Crosbie, Managing Director of Strategic Environmental Consulting Ltd., in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 16 July 2002)

CSR-World launches online labour law database for South Asia [web site] - CSRWorld recently launched an online database called "Country Profiles". This section contains labour law database of South Asian countries like India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Country Profiles section is mainly designed for social compliance needs in India and other South Asian countries. Social Compliance requires compliance with local labour laws on issues like child labour, minimum wages, social security benefits, workers' welfare, workplace conditions etc. Accessible at www.csrworld.net, this is the first online labour law database of key sourcing countries for big American and European Retailers. (Child Labour News Service, 15 July 2002)

Initiative to Test Berkeley Voters' Coffee Conscience [USA] -...After gathering 3,000 signatures, Mr. Young's voter initiative requiring that all cups of coffee sold in Berkeley be Fair Trade, shade-grown or organic has qualified for the November ballot. If it passes, it would make this the only city in the nation with an official coffee policy. (Evelyn Nieves, New York Times, 7 July 2002)

New Initiative to Combat Child Slave Labor in Cocoa Fields Hailed - The launch of a new initiative to fight child and slave labor in West African cocoa fields, announced this week in Geneva, is being hailed as a new landmark in pressuring big corporations to take responsibility for social and working conditions in impoverished countries where they buy their primary commodities. (Jim Lobe, One World, 4 July 2002)

Report: Business in the Environment: Managing the supply chain conference, June 20 2002 - Our roving correspondant Toby Kent reports on what was said at the recent UK sustainable supply chain conference in London (Toby Kent, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 4 July 2002)

Senate [New York State Senate] approves anti-sweatshop bill [USA] -...The bill would prohibit the State Office of General Services from purchasing uniforms and other apparel produced in sweatshops...The Senate bill is similar to a recent law enacted by New York City concerning its apparel purchases. Provisions of the Senate bill include:...Allowing SUNY, CUNY and community colleges to ask if their apparel providers use 'sweatshops' in the production of their clothing. (Senate Republican Majority, New York State Senate, 2 July 2002)

All Party Parliamentary Group on Corporate Social Responsibility [UK] - 1 July 2002 - Submission by Sir Geoffrey Chandler, Founder-Chair, Amnesty International UK Business Group 1991-2001 and former senior executive Royal Dutch/Shell Group -... CSR [corporate social responsibility] will be largely cosmetic if there is no commitment to labour conditions based on acceptable standards for a company's own employees and its supply chains, if there is no acceptance of responsibility for the environmental and human rights impact of its operations, if there is no monitoring and reporting on that impact as rigorous in principle as reporting on money. (Sir Geoffrey Chandler, 1 July 2002)

Making Fair Trade Work in Mexico - In Mexico, a growing number of coops, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), microenterprises, and campesino groups are proving that fair trade offers a viable alternative to communities struggling to cope with globalization [refers to initiatives relating to agriculture, food, cosmetics, coffee, ecotourism, chocolate, retail; also refers to indigenous groups] (Talli Nauman, Americas Program, Interhemispheric Resource Center, July 2002)

Beyond Good Deeds: Case Studies and a New Policy Agenda for Corporate Accountability [coverage includes oil industry & high tech industry; environment; pollution & its impact on human health; health & safety in the workplace; labour rights; security arrangements & human rights abuses; supply chain; codes of conduct; legal accountability; case studies on: Nigeria - Chevron & Shell; Azerbaijan & Kazakhstan - Unocal & Chevron; Ecuador - Occidental; Peru - Shell; Taiwan - Shengli Chemical Co.; Thailand - Seagate Technology, Advanced Micro Devices, Read-Rite, IBM, Lucent Technology, Hana Microelectronics, Philips; India; Malaysia - Seagate Technology, Agilent Technologies, Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, Dell, Fairchild Semiconductor, Integrated Device Technology, Iomega, Knowles Electronics, KOMAG USA, Linear Semiconductor, MCMS, Motorola Technology, Quantum Peripherals, Solectron Technology, Xircom Operations; Costa Rica - Intel, Romic; California] (Michelle Leighton, Naomi Roht-Arriaza & Lyuba Zarsky, California Global Corporate Accountability Project, July 2002)

High street shops under attack for their ethics [UK] - High street shops have scored poorly in a survey rating businesses on their support for ethical trading practices. The survey...awarded marks to businesses according to their stance on issues such as child labour, poverty wages and poor working conditions. The Co-op, Body Shop and DIY chain B&Q all scored highly. But the survey said most high street shops either had no code of conduct to cover unfair trading issues, refused to publish one or declined to allow their codes to be independently checked. (Henrykl Zientek, Huddersfield Daily Examiner [UK], 20 June 2002)

Over 200 Religious, Labor, and Human Rights Groups Calls on M&M/Mars to Offer Fair Trade Chocolate - Groups Say Consumers Would Be Shocked to Learn How Bitterness of Exploitation Taints Their Favorite Chocolate - More than 200 religious organizations, labor, consumer, environmental, public heatlh, and human rights groups are calling on M&M/Mars to ensure fair labor practices for cocoa workers. (Global Exchange, 17 June 2002)

International Aid & Trade New York 2002 - Trade and Development: Building Capacity for Sustainable Markets - June 19-20, 2002 - New York - [conference for those involved in provision of international humanitarian aid] This year the event is focused on Sustainable Procurement through Environmentally and Socially Responsible Procurement (ESRP)...The conference is supported by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The exhibition features companies that work with multilateral organisations, including the UN, IFIs, the Red Cross and various NGOs, which will reflect the conference theme by showcasing goods and services from commercial concerns that incorporate social and environmental considerations into the formation of their services and product solutions. (International Aid & Trade, 14 June 2002)

New Jersey Governor Issues Groundbreaking Executive Order on Anti-sweatshop Uniform Procurement [USA] (UNITE - Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees, 13 June 2002)

BSR Unveils Labor Law Database: Web-based Tool to Improve Labor Compliance and Safeguard Human Rights in the Supply Chain - Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) today unveiled Labor Law, a unique Internet database of labor law reports and supply chain compliance resources. Compiled from hundreds of primary sources, Labor Law will provide users with independently verified, in-depth reports on more than 60 countries' labor requirements relevant to corporate codes of conduct - from child labor and discrimination to working hours and wages. (Business for Social Responsibility, 21 May 2002)

North American Fair Trade Movement Reports Big Advances - The Fair Trade industry in North America made nearly US$100 million in gross sales in the year 2000, according to a new report released this week by the Fair Trade Federation (FTF), an association of retail and wholesale outlets committed to ensuring that Third World producers are paid a basic living wage for their products...it expects further increases in 2001 and 2002 primarily due to the rapidly growing market for fair-trade coffee sold by retail outlets (Jim Lobe, OneWorld, 1 May 2002)

Lifting the corporate veil - A legally binding convention that is enforceable in practice needs to be formulated to ensure proper multinational accountability, capturing the supply-chain, not just subsidiaries. This convention must be applied internationally and, in a development of international law, apply to corporations as well as states. (Richard Meeran, British attorney who acted successfully for South African asbestosis victims against Cape Plc, in Mail & Guardian [South Africa], 19 Apr. 2002)

Making It Right; Lessons and Solutions in Global Sourcing and Labor Issues Conference -...Lebhar-Friedman, publisher of Chain Store Age and DSN Retailing Today, and World Monitors Inc., a consulting group that provides information and consulting services to corporations on business and human rights issues, will host a one day conference to New York City entitled, "Making It Right: Lessons and Solutions in Global Sourcing and Labor Issues." The conference will be held November 5, 2002 (World Monitors, 11 Apr. 2002)

PROFILE: British entrepreneur seeks fairer deal for world's poorest communities [profile of Safia Minney, president of the Fair Trade Co. in Japan]:...Japan is a great market for Fair Trade, says Minney, because Japanese consumers are increasingly interested in the conditions of producers. (Kimberly Palmer, Asahi Shimbun News Service [Japan], 17 Mar. 2002)

Poor farmers taste success - Fairtrade is making headway but is still a tiny part of global trade [refers to coffee industry, cocoa/chocolate industry, Max Havelaar coffee brand, Cafedirect, Starbucks, Sainsbury, Co-op, Day Chocolate Company] (Roger Cowe, Financial Times, 4 Mar. 2002)

Evaluating our suppliers’ social responsibility [refers to human rights] in Reporting on the Triple Bottom Line 2001: dealing with dilemmas (Novo Nordisk, Mar. 2002)

Moving up the learning curve – corporate management of supply chain labour standards - Recent reports on Triumph International (‘Support Breast not Dictators’) and Nike (‘We are not Machines’) have again drawn attention to the policy and management of supply chain labour issues within apparel and footwear companies. But overall is anything actually getting better? (John Sabapathy, Programme Manager at AccountAbility, in SustainAbility Radar, Mar. 2002)

Values in the supply chain - In Focus 3: The executive summary - Value Chains: Lessons from the Kenya tea and Indonesia cocoa sectors - Summary (Ally Bedford, Mick Blowfield, Duncan Burnett and Peter Greenhalgh; Natural Resources Institute, Resource Centre for the Social Dimensions of Business Practice, 2002)

2001:

Governor Pataki Signs New Anti-sweatshop Legislation [state of New York]: Allows Boards of Education to Consider Treatment of Workers When Purchasing Apparel: In honor of Labor Day, Governor George E. Pataki today announced that he has signed into law a measure that will further strengthen New York's ongoing battle against sweatshops and unfair labor practices. The new law will enable boards of education across the State to consider labor standards and working conditions including the illegal use of child labor when purchasing school uniform apparel. (Office of New York Governor George Pataki, 3 Sep. 2001)

No to Global Sweatshops: New York's City Council is about to open a promising new front in the global struggle against sweatshop exploitation--a city procurement ordinance that requires decent wages and factory conditions for the apparel workers who make uniforms for New York's finest. (William Greider, The Nation, 7 May 2001)

Portland Backs Burma Divestment (Burma Action Committee [Portland], 19 Apr. 2001)

Mayor Giuliani vetoes bill amending city's administrative code in relation to city's procurement of apparel and textile services: Remarks by Mayor Giuliani at Public Hearing on Local Laws (New York City press release, 30 Mar. 2001)

UNITE Statement Regarding Groundbreaking New York City Council Anti-Sweatshop Procurement Bill (UNITE, 14 Mar. 2001)

Cities Against Sweatshops: New York, NY (UNITE, 14 Mar. 2001)

City Council Votes to Stamp Out Sweatshops (New York City Council, 14 Mar. 2001)

1999:

"Selective purchasing laws", section 2.8 of Business and Human Rights in a Time of Change (web version: Christopher Avery, Nov. 1999; paper version: Christopher Avery/Amnesty International UK Section, Feb. 2000)

1998:

Municipal Buying Power and Human Rights in Burma: The Case for Canadian Municipal 'Selective Purchasing' Policies (Craig Forcese, University of Toronto Faculty of Law Review, vol. 56, no. 2, spring 1998)