Code of Conduct
Our mutual responsibilities
Ethical and responsible relationships
Double was started in 2009 to encourage employees to build better relationships with clients, suppliers, and ultimately, each other. Through our design and working processes, we aim to shift the way in which brands, retailers and suppliers perceive the impact of their actions on the environment.
Our vision is to change an industry that blindly designs, uses and wastes resources, and operates with wilful ignorance*, to one that understands and chooses a circular design path for all of its retail design and build projects. Shaping the future of retail to one where each and every newly built environment reduces the impact on people and planet.
Double operates by self-managing principles where all staff are treated as equals and we treat each other with respect and fairness. In our daily working relationships, we expect our suppliers to uphold this understanding of equality, respect and fairness regardless of our colleagues age, gender or other orientation and belief.
With our vision in mind we recognise that through our work, we work with many suppliers and factories. We respect that all of our business partners are operated with their own frameworks and codes of conduct. This document is intended as a checkpoint to ensure your business meets Double Retail's ethical and responsibility standards. We kindly request that you read, acknowledge receipt and share this document with your workforce on an open access source for all company employees to see**.
'* Wilful Ignorance - The practice or act of intentional and blatant avoidance, disregard or disagreement with facts, empirical evidence and well-founded arguments because they oppose or contradict your own existing personal beliefs.
'** Please translate to your local language if needed for your workforce
Our principles
Fairness & equality – we treat all people equally, fairly and with dignity. We do not accept physical, psychological or verbal force to be used.
Legal and ethical business – we operate, at all times, within the law.
Child/juvenile labour – we say no to this. No exceptions.
Forced labour – forced, indentured, bonded or any form of slave or human trafficked labour will not be used.
Wages & benefits – All workers will receive fair compensation at a rate that allows some discretionary income and reasonable prosperity.
Hours of work – We recognise that all workers shall not exceed 48 hours a week unless they agree, without coercion, in extreme circumstances.
Freedom of Association* and collective bargaining will be allowed.
Non-discrimination – workers will not be discriminated against in any way.
Women’s rights – all women will be treated with equality of opportunity, remuneration and are never discriminated against prior to, during and post pregnancy.
The environment – all suppliers must operate within and comply with local environmental laws and expected Double Retail standards.
'* Wikipedia - Freedom of Association - 'encompasses both an individual's right to join or leave groups voluntarily, the right of the group to take collective action to pursue the interests of its members, and the right of an association to accept or decline membership based on certain criteria'.
Fair and achievable
This Code of Conduct applies to all of Double Retail suppliers and their sub-contractors or any other person or organisation involved in supplying goods to Double Retail. We have written the code to be fair, achievable, and easy to check, and to promote the ongoing development of our beneficial relationship.
We require all suppliers to have read and acknowledged our code of conduct before we place orders with you.
Legal & ethical business
At all times you must meet the legal standards and requirements of the countries in which you are working.
Manufacturing Processes
You are reminded all premises involved in manufacture are subject to your local legal standards. This includes premises used by subcontractors* and dormitory accommodation.
Sub-contracting and home-working must be declared and have our written permission.
'* A subcontractor is a secondary business which supplies the company with goods integral to and used for the production of the Company's goods.
Monitoring and inspection
You are responsible for making sure that everyone in your supply chain knows about and complies with this Code of Conduct.
You must keep records to show that you are carrying out regular reviews and checks.
Our staff or representatives may visit your factory without warning to carry out inspections.
You must provide all information requested by Double Retail to confirm compliance to the code. We will keep this information confidential*
'* As part of our commitment to be a better and beneficial business we share this Code of Conduct with the public and indicate the percentage of our suppliers that have signed and agreed to its principles.
Non-Compliance
If you are unable to comply with any parts of the code, please contact Double Retail to give reason for failure and timescale to meet standards. We will work with you to correct the non-compliance.
The following sections of our Code of Conduct expand the context of our principles.
Workers’ rights
We insist employment is freely chosen and there is no forced, bonded or involuntary prison labour*.
We also insist your workers are not required to lodge “deposits” or their identity papers with you as an employer and are free to leave their employment after reasonable notice.
Companies must respect the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the United Nations Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
'* FORCED or BONDED - All work or service extracted from any person under menace of any penalty for which said person has not offered him/herself voluntarily or for which such work is demanded as a means of repayment of debt.
Other workers’ rights we expect from you as our supplier;
Freedom of association and right to collective bargaining are respected.
Workers, without distinction, have the right to join or form trade unions of their own choosing.
The employer adopts an open attitude towards the activities of trade unions and their organisational activities.
Workers representatives are not discriminated against and have access to carry out their representative functions in the workplace.
Where the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining is restricted under law, the employer facilitates, and does not hinder, the development of parallel means for independent, free association and bargaining.
A safe and hygienic environment shall be provided, bearing in mind prevailing knowledge of the industry and any specific hazards. Adequate steps shall be taken to prevent accidents and injury to health arising out of, associated with, or occurring in the course of work, by minimising, so far as is reasonably practicable, the causes of hazards inherent in the working environment.
Workers shall receive regular recorded health and safety training and the training shall be repeated for new or reassigned workers.
Access to clean toilet facilities and to safe drinking water, and if appropriate, sanitary facilities for food storage shall be provided.
Accommodation where provided, shall be clean, safe and meet basic needs of workers.
The company observing the Code shall assign responsibility for health and safety to a senior management representative.
The company must have a waste management policy and procedure, so waste is minimised; is correctly and safely handled, stored and disposed; is not a hazard to the environment or if subsequently used; and is recycled where possible.
Child labour
We define a child as any person less than 15 years of age unless local minimum age law stipulates a higher age for work or mandatory schooling, in which case the higher age shall apply. If however, local minimum age law is set at 14 years of age in accordance with developing country exceptions under ILO Convention No. 138, the lower will apply
There shall be no recruitment of child labour*;
Companies should develop, participate and contribute to policies and programmes, which provide remediation of any child, found to be performing labour to enable them to attend and remain in quality education until no longer a child.
Children and young workers** under 18 shall not be employed at night or in hazardous conditions.
These policies and procedures shall conform to the provisions of the relevant ILO (International Labour Organisation) standards.
'* Child Labour - Any work by a child or young person younger than the age(s) specified in the text, which does not comply with the provisions of the relevant ILO standards, and any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child's or young person's education, or to be harmful to the child's or young person's health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development.
'** Young worker - any worker over the age of a child as defined above and under the age of 18
A living wage and fair place to work
Wages and benefits paid for a standard working week meet, at a minimum, national legal standards, but preferably take into account and pay at an industry benchmark standard. In any event wages should always be enough to meet basic needs and to provide some discretionary income.
All workers shall be provided with written and understandable information about their employment conditions in respect to wages before they enter employment and about particulars of their wages for the pay period concerned each time that they are paid.
Deductions from wages as a disciplinary measure shall not be permitted nor shall any deductions from wages not provided for by national law be permitted without the expressed permission of the worker concerned.
All disciplinary measures should be recorded.
Working hours are not excessive
Working hours need to comply with national laws and benchmark industry standards whichever affords greater protection; In any event workers shall not, on a regular basis, be required to work in excess of 48 hours per week and shall be provided with at least one day off for every 7-day period on average.
Overtime shall be voluntary, shall not exceed 12 hours per week, shall not be demanded on a regular basis.
Equality
There should be no discrimination in hiring, compensation, access to training, promotion, termination or retirement based on race, caste, national origin, religion, age, disability, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, union membership or political affiliation.
Regular employment is provided to every extent possible and work performed must be on the basis of recognised employment relationship established through national law and practice.
Obligations to employees under labour or social security laws and regulations arising from the regular employment relationship shall not be avoided through the use of labour-only contracting, sub-contracting, or home-working arrangements, or through apprenticeship schemes where there is no real intent to impart skills or provide regular employment, nor shall any such obligations be avoided through excessive use of fixed-term contracts of employment.
All workers must be validated for their legal right to work by reviewing original documentation. The company should implement procedures to demonstrate compliance. This code of conduct also applies to agency staff and immigrant workers.
No harsh or inhumane treatment is allowed
Physical abuse or discipline, the threat of physical abuse, sexual or other harassment and verbal abuse or other forms of intimidation shall be prohibited.
I agree to Double Retail’s Code of Conduct
The provisions of this code constitute minimum and not maximum standards.
The code should not be used to prevent companies from exceeding these standards. Companies applying this code are expected to comply with national and other applicable law and where the provisions of law and this code address the same subject, to apply that provision which affords greater protection.
As a supplier to Double Retail you have read and understand the expectations of Double Retail Code of Conduct and acknowledge that you abide by these expectations.
You further understand that failure to abide by these expectations may result in punitive action up to and including termination of the business relationship.
Last Updated February 2020
Last updated