SEDEX

SEDEX is an exchanges platform of national data allowing companies:

• to consult questions about corporate social responsibility
• to have available data regarding other companies with whom they have commercial relationship

Key points:

• The supplier controls the access to the data
• Companies can consult the supply chain of their partners and other members

THE FIRST STEP FOR THE SUPPLIER IS TO SUBSCRIBE ON THE WEBSITE OF SEDEX AND THEN, TO FiLL IN THE SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONNAIRE ON 10 SUBJECTS:

• No forced work (SA 8000)
• freedom of association (SA 8000)
• health, safety and hygiene
• no child work (SA 8000)
• remuneration level
• work time
• discrimination
• regular hiring
• discipline
• environment

TO SUM UP...

Sedex is an organization for companies whose goal is to improve ethical performance of their supply chain. However, SEDEX requires from its member to capture information on social responsibility and on performance. The central data base can be seen by other members of SEDEX.

This ethical data platform, SEDEX, allows thereby to the member companies to capture information on work standards. This is not about fixing standards but rather permit to users to signal deviations from the public standards, including conventions of the ILO, the standard SA 8000, the base code ETI and codes of conduct self-proclaimed by the companies. There are three categories:

• the retailers and the brands
• production site
• the big suppliers having multiple production sites like BALLYFABS INTERNATIONAL LIMITED

The fees are proportionate to the size, beginning to 25 pounds for a unique production site. The organization is founded on members, each one having a right to vote equal whatever its turnover is. The big companies which funded the development of SEDEX, estimate that by facilitating the information normalization, they will reduce the charges relating to the administration and to multiples audits, so they and their smaller suppliers can more easily demonstrate compliance with social norms.

Nowadays, supermarkets and large food retailers, including Geest, Marks & Spencer, Northern Food, RHM, Sainsbury's, Tesco, Uniq and Waitrose, collaborate on the initiative of the exchange of ethical data on the suppliers (SEDEX), which offer an exchange platform of information allowing members companies to share this access to the audit reports on suppliers, reducing the necessity of multiple audits.