FRONTLINE SUPPORT.
A joint non-profit making, money raising venture between
Outdoor Max LTD and Native Promotions.
WHO WE ARE and WHY
We are both small independent companies who work closely together producing high quality uniforms and print wear and promotional garments.
By teaming up we believe we can raise considerable funds by selling T shirts and cotton shoppers/bags for life, that show support for the NHS Charities Together, all on this dedicated website shop. We have explained our plans and the designs to NHS Charities Together and they have given us permission to do so using their logo.
We are not a charity, but this is not a money making exercise for us. We are trying to keep our employees employed and our businesses running and if we can do that and donate all profits to the NHS, we have to try!
We are able to donate over £5.00 of the costs of the T shirts to NHS Charities Direct and roughly half of the cost of the bags for life. This will increase as the volume of T shirts increases and we can get more back on our margins. We are also hoping that we can donate more from sales by claiming the VAT back for the charity, this for instance is £2.50 per T shirt which would mean over half the T shirt cost will be donated and will be negotiating with the Inland Revenue for this.
We aim to sell as many as possible through the use of social media and hopefully national media.
We are aiming to sell thousands of these items.
Ethics
All printing is carried out here in the UK using inks that conform to all the current environmental standards. Both our companies are run by directors who pride themselves on responsible ethics.
The garments are all ethically produced under strict guidelines. Below, we have added the main principles of the Wrap (World Responsible Accredited Production) and the details of the OEKO-Tex standard 100, plus links to the schemes webpages for more information.
The WRAP Principles are based on generally accepted international workplace standards, local laws and workplace regulations, and include the spirit or language of relevant conventions of the International Labor Organization (ILO). The Principles encompass human resources management, health and safety, environmental practices, and legal compliance including import/export and customs compliance and security standards.
The WRAP Certification Program’s objective is to independently monitor and certify compliance with these standards, to ensure that sewn products are being produced under lawful, humane and ethical conditions. Participating facilities voluntarily commit to ensuring that their manufacturing practices will meet these standards, and further commit to passing along, on their part, the expectation that their contractors and suppliers likewise comply with these standards.
1. Compliance with Laws and Workplace Regulations
Facilities will comply with laws and regulations in all locations where they conduct business.
All facilities will comply with the legal requirements and standards of their industry under the local and national laws of the jurisdictions in which the facilities are doing business, along with any applicable international laws. This will cover all labor and employment laws of those jurisdictions, as well as laws governing the conduct of business in general, including rules and standards of ethics dealing with corruption and transparency, and any relevant environmental laws.
2. Prohibition of Forced Labor
Facilities will not use involuntary, forced or trafficked labor.
Facilities will maintain employment strictly on a voluntary basis. Facilities will not use any forced, prison, indentured, bonded or trafficked labor. This will include ensuring that any workers they hire will be under labor contracts that fully comply with all relevant legal requirements and do not impose any form of coercion (including imposing substantial fines or loss of residency papers by workers leaving employment or restricting a worker’s ability to voluntarily end his/her employment). In addition, when hiring workers through an employment broker or agency, facilities will ensure that the workers’ passports are not withheld, all written contracts are in the native language of the workers, and recruitment fees are not borne by the workers themselves.
3. Prohibition of Child Labor
Facilities will not hire any employee under the age of 14 or under the minimum age established by law for employment, whichever is greater, or any employee whose employment would interfere with compulsory schooling.
Facilities will ensure they do not engage in any form of child labor, including, but not limited to, the internationally recognized worst forms of child labor. Facilities may not employ any person at an age younger than the law of the jurisdiction allows and in any case not below the age of 14, even if permitted by local law. In addition, facilities will adhere to local legal requirements regarding mandatory schooling. Further, if, where permitted by local law, a facility employs young workers (defined as workers whose age is between the minimum age of employment and 18 years), the facility will also comply with any applicable legal restrictions on the nature and volume of work performed by such young workers, as well as any other requirements imposed by law, including ensuring that such young workers do not perform any hazardous work (e.g., chemicalhandling or operating heavy machinery).
4. Prohibition of Harassment or Abuse
Facilities will provide a work environment free of supervisory or co-worker harassment or abuse, and free of corporal punishment in any form.
Facilities will ensure a workplace that is respectful of a worker’s rights and dignity. This includes ensuring that no corporal punishment or physical coercion be used. Facilities will not engage in or tolerate sexual harassment, indecent or threatening gestures, abusive tone or language or any other kind of undesired physical or verbal contact, such as bullying. In particular, facilities will ensure proper training at all levels - including management, supervisors and workers - to secure a workplace free of harassment or abuse.
5. Compensation and Benefits
Facilities will pay at least the minimum total compensation required by local law, including all mandated wages, allowances & benefits.
Facilities will ensure proper compensation for their employees for all the work done, by providing in a timely manner all the wages and benefits that are in compliance with the local and national laws of the jurisdiction in which they are located. This will include any premiums for overtime work or work done during holidays, as well as any other allowances or benefits, including any mandatory social insurance, required by local law.
6. Hours of Work
Hours worked each day, and days worked each week, should not exceed the limitations of the country’s law. Facilities will provide at least one day off in every seven-day period, except as required to meet urgent business needs.
Facilities are required by local law to adhere to any limits set on regular working hours as well as any limits set on overtime work. Long term participation in the WRAP Certification Program is contingent upon meeting the limitations set by local law. WRAP recognizes that this can be a particularly challenging requirement, especially when taking into account local enforcement norms and customs. In light of this reality, WRAP will permit full compliance with local laws on working hours to be achieved incrementally, provided that a given facility meets the following conditions: is fully transparent about its working hours; ensures that those hours are all being worked voluntarily, in conditions that protect worker safety and health; compensates all employees in keeping with WRAP Principle 5; and shows improvement toward meeting the working hours requirements from one audit to the next.
7. Prohibition of Discrimination
Facilities will employ, pay, promote, and terminate workers on the basis of their ability to do the job, rather than on the basis of personal characteristics or beliefs.
Facilities will ensure that all terms and conditions of employment are based on an individual’s ability to do the job, and not on the basis of any personal characteristics or beliefs. Facilities will ensure that any employment decision - involving hiring, firing, assigning work, paying or promoting - is made without discriminating against the employees on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or other similar factors (pregnancy, political opinion or affiliation, social status, etc.).
8. Health and Safety
Facilities will provide a safe and healthy work environment. Where residential housing is provided for workers, facilities will provide safe and healthy housing.
Facilities will provide a safe, clean, healthy and productive workplace for their employees. Facilities shall prioritize worker health and safety above all else, and proactively address any safety issues that could arise. This will include a wide variety of requirements, such as, ensuring, among other things, the availability of clean drinking water (at no charge to workers), adequate medical resources, fire exits and safety equipment, well-lighted and comfortable workstations, clean restrooms. Further, facilities shall adequately train all their workers on how to perform their jobs safely
9. Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining
Facilities will recognize and respect the right of employees to exercise their lawful rights of free association and collective bargaining.
Facilities will respect the freedom of each employee to choose for him- or her-self whether or not to join a workers’ association. Facilities cannot discriminate against workers based on whether or not they choose to associate. Both the facility and the workers shall ensure they conduct themselves in accordance with all relevant laws in this regard. Facilities will ensure an effective mechanism is in place to address any workplace grievances.
10. Environment
Facilities will comply with environmental rules, regulations and standards applicable to their operations, and will observe environmentally conscious practices in all locations where they operate.
Facilities will ensure compliance with all applicable legally mandated environmental standards, and should demonstrate a commitment to protecting the environment by actively monitoring their environmental practices. In particular, facilities will ensure proper waste management, including monitoring the disposal of any waste material - whether solid, liquid or gaseous - to ensure such disposal is done safely and in a manner consistent with all relevant laws.
11. Customs Compliance
Facilities will comply with applicable customs laws, and in particular, will establish and maintain programs to comply with customs laws regarding illegal transshipment of finished products.
Facilities will ensure that all merchandise is accurately marked or labeled in compliance with all applicable laws. In addition, facilities will keep records for all materials and orders, as well as maintain detailed production records.
12. Security
Facilities will maintain facility security procedures to guard against the introduction of non-manifested cargo into outbound shipments (i.e. drugs, explosives biohazards andor other contraband).
Facilities will ensure adequate controls are in place to safeguard against introduction of any non-manifested cargo. In this regard, WRAP recognizes the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP)’s C-TPAT Guidelines for Foreign Manufacturers as a best practice program, and has adopted those guidelines under this Principle.
This is the link to the wrap website
http://www.wrapcompliance.org/12-principles
This is the information on OEKO-Tex
What does the label mean?
If a textile article carries the STANDARD 100 label, you can be certain that every component of this article, i.e. every thread, button and other accessories, has been tested for harmful substances and that the article therefore is harmless in human ecological terms. The test is conducted by our independent OEKO-TEX® partner institutes on the basis of our extensive OEKO-TEX® criteria catalog. In the test they take into account numerous regulated and non-regulated substances, which may be harmful to human health. In many cases the limit values for the STANDARD 100 go beyond national and international requirements. The criteria catalog is updated at least once a year and expanded with new scientific knowledge or statutory requirements. It is not easy for manufacturers and customers to keep an overview of the legal situation concerning harmful substances every day. Our experts from the OEKO-TEX® institutes do this for you.
