Design Source USA  
 

 

Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability

Strong values guide everything that we do - particularly our relationships with the associates and workers around the world who comprise the Design Source family.

We work hard to ensure that every individual enjoys a clean, safe work environment, free from discrimination and harassment. We believe that workers at supplier facilities have the right to freely choose employment.  We support the right to fair compensation, the right to associate freely and bargain collectively. These and other rights are established in the Labor Standards set by the Fair Labor Association. www.fairlabor.org

Consistent with internationally recognized labor standards, these guidelines help to ensure that wherever our products are produced, each and every item reflects our values.

Reducing our Environmental Footprint and Maximizing our Social Impact

Our company values, which incorporate the principles of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability, guide our relationships with clients, employees, and the communities and environment in which we operate. Our approach to sustainability addresses both our environmental and social impacts, supporting our vision to remain a vendor of choice, while meeting client demands for socially responsible partners.

Design Source USA respects local laws and customs while supporting international laws and regulations. These policies have been integral to the way we have done business in the past and will continue to play a central role in influencing our practice in the future.

Design Source USA is committed to sourcing its products in compliance with applicable laws. We uphold requirements for all of our factories in order to do business with us. In addition to ramdom Third part Audits, Design Source Representatives regularly make unscheduled spot visits at these factories to ensure their compliance with the law and the minimum requirements listed below.

1. Legal and Ethical Business Practices: Authorized Facilities must fully comply with all applicable laws of the countries in which they are located including all laws, regulations and rules relating to wages, hours, employment, labor, health and safety, the environment, immigration, and the apparel industry. Employers must be ethical in their business practices.

2. Child labor: The term "child" means a person who is less than 15 years old or younger than the age for completing compulsory education in the country of manufacture where such age is higher than 15. Factories are encouraged to develop lawful workplace apprenticeship programs whenever possible for the educational benefit of their workers, provided that all participants meet both our minimum age standard of 15 and minimum legal age requirements. All Authorized Facilities must observe all legal requirements for work of employees under 18 years of age, particularly those pertaining to hours of work and working conditions.

3. Forced or prison labor: Design Source USA's factories shall not use any forced, prison or indentured labor in the manufacture and finishing of our products. Furthermore, Design Source does not tolerate the use of corporal punishment.

4. Non-discrimination: Design Source USA requires that all of our factories employ workers on the basis of their ability to do the job, without regard to their personal characteristics or beliefs. Design Source USA recognizes and respects cultural differences from country to country and will favor those factories that are sensitive to these differences.

5. Wages, benefits and hours: Design Source USA requires its factories to set working hours, wages and overtime pay in compliance with all applicable laws, rules and regulations. All workers shall be paid at least the minimum legal wage or a wage that meets local industry standards, whichever is greater. Authorized Facilities must ensure employees' hours worked shall not, on a regularly scheduled basis, exceed the lesser of (a) the legal limitations on regular and overtime hours in the jurisdiction in which they manufacture or (b) 60 hours per week including overtime (except in extraordinary business circumstances). Employees must be informed at the time of hiring if mandatory overtime is a condition of employment. All employees will be entitled to at least one day off in every seven-day period.

6. Working conditions: Design Source USA expects all of its factories to treat all workers with respect and dignity and not to exploit them in any way. Authorized Facilities must provide their employees with a clean, safe and healthy work environment, designed to prevent accidents and injury to health arising out of or occurring during the course of work. All Authorized Facilities are required to comply with all applicable, legally mandated standards for workplace health and safety in the countries and communities in which they operate.

7. Monitoring, evaluation and enforcement: As a condition of doing business with Design Source, each and every factory must comply with these Terms and Conditions. If Design Source has determined that any factory has violated any of these Terms and Conditions, we will either terminate our business relationship with that factory or require the factory to implement a corrective action plan. If corrective action is advised but not taken by a particular factory, Design Source will suspend placement of future orders and may terminate current production at that factory.

8. Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining: Authorized Facilities shall obtain and comply with current information on local and national laws and regulations regarding Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining. No employee shall be subject to harassment, intimidation or retaliation in their efforts to freely associate or bargain collectively.

9. Harassment: Authorized Facilities must treat all employees with respect and dignity. Authorized Facilities may not subject employees to corporal punishment, physical, sexual, psychological or verbal harassment or abuse. In addition, Authorized Facilities may not use monetary fines as a disciplinary practice.

10. Subcontracting: Authorized Facilities will not utilize subcontractors in the manufacturing of Design Source products or components without Design Source’s written approval and only after the subcontractor has agreed to comply with the Terms of Engagement, including these Global Compliance Principles.

11. Monitoring and Compliance: Authorized Facilities will maintain on site all documentation necessary to demonstrate compliance with these Requirements. Design Source and its subsidiaries will undertake affirmative measures, such as announced and unannounced on-site inspections of production facilities, to monitor compliance with these Requirements. Design Source Authorized Facilities must allow Design Source representatives full access to production facilities, employee records and employees for confidential interviews in connection with monitoring visits. In addition, Authorized Facilities must respond promptly to reasonable inquiries by Design Source representatives concerning the subjects addressed in the audit.

12. Informed Workplace: Authorized Facilities should inform employees about the workplace standards orally and through the posting of standards in a prominent place and undertake other efforts to educate employees about the standards on a regular basis.

13. Facility Security: It is Corporation policy that all suppliers establish facility security procedures to guard against the introduction of non-manifested cargo into outbound shipments. Such items would include drugs, biological agents, explosives, weapons, radioactive materials, illegal aliens, and other contraband.

14. Environment: Authorized Facilities must comply with all laws and regulations relating to environmental protection in the countries in which they operate.  Facilities should have policies and procedures in place to ensure environmental impacts are minimized with respect to energy, air emissions, water, waste, hazardous materials and other significant environmental risks. Facilities are expected to make sustainable improvements in environmental performance and require the same of their suppliers and sub-contractors.

In order to become an Authorized Facility, each of our suppliers must sign and abide by our Workplace Code of Conduct Engagement document. And to ensure that compliance is ongoing, each location must undergo an initial on-site audit process. 

We have learned that improving compliance is an evolving process, one that can be challenging. Yet we do not hesitate to walk away from suppliers who do not share our commitment to providing an ethical and responsible work environment. Ultimately, we know that the quality of our products depends on the strength of our principles.

These Compliance Principles apply to all facilities that produce goods for Design Source, or any of its subsidiaries, divisions, or affiliates.

Design Source strongly encourages contractors, agents, and suppliers to exceed these Compliance Requirements and to promote best practices and continuous improvement throughout all of their factories. These Requirements or their equivalent must be posted in all major workplaces, translated into the language(s) of the employees.

Violations of these Requirements will be appropriately remedied at the cost of the facility. Design Source reserves the right to take necessary measures to ensure future compliance with these Requirements. Failure to comply with these Requirements may ultimately result in termination of the relationship between Design Source and the Authorized Facility.
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