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Ambitious Implementation of Due Diligence Obligations

It is part of the duty of care of companies that they do not violate human rights or harm the environment in their business activities.

The Textiles Partnership is the first point of contact for all those who want to systematically implement due diligence obligations and thus also live up to their corporate responsibility for business partners and workers in the value chains.

The work of the Textiles Partnership is aligned with the guidelines and recommendations of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The sector handout "OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector" defines the essential due diligence obligations and requirements. The guidance is the guiding framework of the review process.

The Elements of the Due Diligence Process

Due diligence is far more than the widespread, audit-based approach and puts a focus on the following aspects:

Anchoring due diligence as a management process for continuous improvements
Analysing and prioritising social, ecological, and compliance risks as the basis for planning measures
Taking into account the whole supply chain
Emphasising the significance of purchasing practices of brands and retailers
Including stakeholders in production countries
Implementation of remediation and grievance mechanisms
Taking the requirements and expectations of enterprises into account and considering their specific situation, e.g. size or sourcing model
Asking for sector-specific cooperation and collaboration with all stakeholders

Details and Guidelines

Environmental and social due diligence have become increasingly relevant for companies in recent years and must be thought of together. For example, the Due Diligence Act requires companies to publish a policy statement that relates to compliance with social and environmental due diligence obligations. Possible forms of a policy include a voluntary commitment, a code of conduct, a declaration or a guideline. This guide supports you in this process by providing tips on how to develop and implement the policy based on practical examples.

Knowing what risks and negative impacts your business activities pose for humans and the environment is the first step and crucial for meeting your due diligence obligations.

In order to effectively counter potential and actual impacts, the findings from the risk analysis should be integrated into all corporate processes. This requires the anchoring of objectives and measures on sector risks in the corporate processes. Guides and documents from the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles or other organizations are available in the members' area for this purpose. In this overview, we have collected the most important support offers of the Partnership on the individual sector risks for our members. Sorted by topic, links lead directly and easily to the relevant files.

An effective monitoring system helps companies implement social and environmental goals in the supply chain and communicate progress to external stakeholders. This ranges from internal requirements and indicators for measuring progress to various monitoring tools and how to deal with violations of agreements made. This guide provides interested companies with suggestions for introducing or improving a monitoring system in the supply chain.

International standards are unanimous in requiring that companies provide effective grievance mechanisms for those potentially affected by social and environmental impacts and provide redress when needed. This also applies to impacts on workers in the supply chain. This is about developing, establishing and supporting grievance mechanisms and remediation along your own supply chain. This guide provides information on how to develop, establish and support grievance mechanisms and remediation along your supply chain.

Organisations should regularly and publicly report on the integration of due diligence processes and risk management procedures in their supply chains as well as grievance management and the corresponding solutions. By communicating their responsibility externally, businesses strengthen and deepen the internal cooperation and the communication between different departments as well as the relationship with their stakeholders. Furthermore, they create a competitive advantage regarding investors, suppliers, and consumers. here .