Barnard College
OP-11: Sustainable Procurement

Barnard College is committed to conducting its business affairs in a socially responsible manner consistent with its educational mission. It is the policy of Barnard College (“College”) that apparel bearing the names of the College, logos, mascots, seals, or other trademarks (“Trademarks”) owned or used by the College must be produced under fair, safe, and humane working conditions. Therefore, all apparel bearing College Trademarks, regardless of end use, including retail and promotional items, gifts, uniforms, or other uses – must be produced or otherwise sourced only through companies authorized to place College Trademarks onto apparel. It is the responsibility of all College employees and students ordering apparel bearing the College’s name, logo, or other College-owned Trademarks to use only authorized Licensees that have expressly agreed to adhere to this policy.
Barnard College expects its vendors to conduct their business in a manner consistent with this Apparel Manufacturing Code of Conduct (“Code”), and to follow workplace standards that adhere to this Code. The Code is subject to amendment to reflect any subsequently developed standards by the College.

The code sets these standards:

a. Legal Compliance: Vendors must comply, at a minimum, with all applicable legal requirements, of the country in which the apparel is manufactured, including but not limited to environmental and labor laws. Where this code and applicable laws of the country of manufacture conflict or vary, the higher standard shall prevail.
b. Environmental Standards: Vendors will be committed to the protection and preservation of the global environment, respect for the world’s finite resources, and conduct their business in accordance with these principles. Vendors will protect the residential areas surrounding their factories, which shall include but not be exclusively limited to disposing of garbage and waste in a manner that does not jeopardize the health and safety of nearby residents. Furthermore, Vendors must compensate local communities for any degradation of the natural environment as a consequence of their operations, and must make best efforts to use the most environmentally conscious packaging available. Vendors must minimize the release of any pollutant that reasonably will cause environmental damage to air, water, or land of its inhabitants.
c. Ethical Principles: Vendors will commit to conducting their business according to a set of ethical standards that include, but are not limited to, honesty, integrity, trustworthiness, and respect for the intrinsic value of each human being.
d. Employment Standards: Vendors will only do business with Vendors whose employees work voluntarily, are not at undue risk of physical harm, are fairly compensated, and are not exploited in any way. In addition, the following specific guidelines must be followed by all Vendors:
i. Wages and Benefits: Vendors must recognize that wages are essential to meeting employees’ basic needs. Vendors shall pay employees, as a floor, wages and benefits that match the local prevailing wages and benefits in the relevant country. Additionally, such wages and benefits must constitute a living wage within that relevant country for the employees and their families. Whichever provides greater wages and benefits shall be the prevailing standard for purposes of this Code.
ii. Regular Working Hours: Vendor Employees shall not be required to work more than lesser of forty-eight (48) hours per week, or the limits on regular hours allowed by the law of the country of manufacture. Employees shall be entitled to at least twenty-four (24) consecutive hours of rest in every seven (7) day period, in addition to holidays and vacations.
iii. Overtime: Overtime hours, in excess of the regular working hours as defined above, must be worked voluntarily by the employees, and not be coerced or forced in any way. In addition to their compensation for regular work, employees shall be compensated for overtime hours at the greater of either:
1. one and one-half times the regular rate of pay during the workweek and twice the regular rate of pay on holidays and in the seventh consecutive day of work, or
2. as is legally required in the country of the manufacturer
e. Child Labor: Vendors shall not employee any person younger than fifteen (15), or younger than the age for completing compulsory education in the country of manufacture, whichever age is higher. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no person under the age of eighteen (18) will undertake hazardous work, or work that, by its nature or the manner in which it is carried out, is reasonably foreseeable to cause harm to the health and safety of the worker. Vendors agree to consult with governmental, human rights, and non-governmental organizations, and will take reasonable steps as evaluated by the College or its duly authorized monitors to minimize any negative impact on children released from this employment as a result of this Code implementation and enforcement.
f. Forced Labor: There shall be no use of forced labor, whether in the form of prison labor, indentured labor, bonded labor, or otherwise.
g. Health and Safety: Vendors shall provide a safe and healthy work environment to prevent accidents and injury to health arising out of, linked with, or occurring in the course of work or as a result of the operation of Vendor facilities. College reserves the right to request any authorized monitors to report on compliance with the following health and safety standards:
i. Manufacturing Equipment and Safety: All hazardous equipment must be properly maintained, with a maintenance log to monitor compliance, and have all required safety devices. All workers must, at a minimum, receive all legally mandated personal protection equipment to operate equipment, as well as all required training and licensing.
ii. Working Environment: All workplaces should meet minimum standards for ventilation, room temperature, air quality, lighting and decibel levels, and workers should be provided with basic personal protective equipment, including but not limited to providing personal hearing protection devices, and proper respiratory ventilation devices.
iii. Hazardous Chemicals: All workplaces should have proper labeling and worker education with regard to all hazardous materials used in the plant, proper storage of all hazardous materials, and emergency-preparedness plans, emergency first-aid supplies, and a comprehensive safety log.
iv. Fire Plans: All workplaces should have clearly marked accessible emergency exits and clear, marked paths to them, emergency or fire alarms and lighting, maintained fire extinguishers throughout the work site as required by law, and emergency response plans in the event of a fire that are practiced by the workers at regular intervals.
v. Hygiene: All workplaces, canteen and cafeterias, toilet facilities, and any other break areas must satisfy minimum health standards and be in good working order. Toilet facilities should be stocked with all necessary supplies, and be free from monitoring.
h. Nondiscrimination: Vendors shall employ individuals solely on the basis of their ability to perform the job. There shall be no discrimination in hiring, salary, benefits, performance evaluation, discipline, promotion, retirement or dismissal on the basis of age, sex, gender expression, gender identity, pregnancy, maternity leave status, marital status, race, nationality, country of origin, social or ethnic origin, disability, sexual orientation, religion or political opinion. Workers who take maternity or any short-term disability leave will not face dismissal, loss of seniority, or reduction or deduction of wages, and will be able to return to their employment, upon completion of maternity or short-term disability leave leave, at the same rate of pay and benefits.
i. Harassment or Abuse: Every employee shall be treated with dignity and respect. No employee shall be subject to any physical, sexual, psychological, or verbal harassment or abuse. No employee or prospective employee shall be subjected to involuntary use of contraceptives or pregnancy testing. Vendors will not use, tolerate, or otherwise permit any form of corporal punishment.
j. Women’s Rights: Advocating women’s rights remains of particular importance to the College. The majority of apparel workers worldwide are women. In addition to not discriminating on the basis of sex, pregnancy, maternity leave status, marital status or sexual orientation, the following specific guidelines must be followed:
i. Women workers will receive equal remuneration, including benefits, equal treatment, equal evaluation for the quality of their work, and equal opportunity to fill all positions as male workers.
ii. Pregnancy tests will not be a condition of employment, nor will they be demanded of employees.
iii. Workers who take maternity leave or other leave that may be used in the event of childbirth or pregnancy-related conditions will not face dismissal or the threat of dismissal, loss of seniority or deduction of wages, and will be able to return to their former employment, upon completion of maternity leave, at the same rate of pay and benefits prior to maternity leave.
iv. Vendors shall provide appropriate services and job accommodations to women workers in connection with pregnancy, including but not limited to access to legally required health care provided by the employer, government or other provider. Vendors shall also provide reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for nursing children, as well as a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers to express breast milk.
v. Workers will not be exposed to hazardous or toxic chemicals that may endanger their safety, including their reproductive health, without safeguards and proper instruction in their use.
vi. Workers will not be forced or pressured to use contraception during the course of their employment.
k. Freedom of Association: Vendors shall recognize and respect the right of employees to 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. Vendors shall allow union organizers free access to employees in and around the workplace. Vendors must recognize the union of the employees’ choice.
l. Natural Disaster / Interruption of Production: In the instance of a natural disaster or other crisis that causes the disruption of production, Vendor shall make every effort to resume production at the affected worksite(s) to prior levels as soon as feasible and not to move production elsewhere, recognizing that doing so would further exacerbate the effects of the crisis on the workers and the local community.
m. Labor Standards Environment: In countries where law or practice conflicts with these labor standards, vendors agree to work with governmental, human rights, labor business organizations, and the Workers Rights Consortium (“WRC”) and any authorized monitors to achieve full compliance with these standards. Vendors further agree to refrain from any actions that would diminish the protections of these labor standards. In addition to all other rights under the Agreement, the College reserves the right to refuse purchase of goods made in countries where:
i. Progress towards implementation of the employment standards in the Code is no longer being made; and
ii. Compliance with the employment standards in the Code is deemed impossible.
The College shall make such determination based upon examination of reports from governmental, human rights, labor and business organizations and after consultation with the relevant Vendor.