Annually, Electrolux tracks areas that pose challenges to upholding high standards in human rights such as protecting freedom of association, the abolition of child labor and forced and compulsory labor.
The Group maps its operations and suppliers against geographical areas considered sensitive by external sources such as Maplecroft, Transparency International and Amnesty International due to weak legislation or poor enforcement of existing laws.
Operations in countries with high, medium and low human rights risks are identified. The high-risk regions with Electrolux manufacturing facilities are:
- Argentina
- Brazil
- Chile
- China
- Egypt
- Mexico
- Romania
- Thailand
- Ukraine
See also the enclosed map of Electrolux operations.
Electrolux conducted 14 (11) internal Code of Conduct audits by combined teams of Electrolux representatives and third party auditors, and were concentrated in Latin America, Asia Pacific and Egypt. In 2012 the focus will shift to Eastern Europe.
A facility’s risk classification is adjusted depending on its past performance, taking into account additional information such as number of employees, types of activities, Ethics Helpline records and customer requests.
The internal Code of Conduct audit is defined according to the outcomes of this preliminary risk assessment. The audit identifies non-compliances and corrective actions are taken as a result.
Similarly, supplier audits focus on high- and medium-risk suppliers and address non-compliance through mandatory corrective actions as well as support activities such as training.
In 2012 Electrolux will initiate a review of its human rights approach in the light of changes to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and new UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (the ‘Ruggie framework’).
Freedom of association
In those regions where worker associations are not possible due to national praxis, each unit and its suppliers are expected to find appropriate and legal mechanisms through which workers can effectively express workplace concerns to management.
Records are to be kept from these formalized consultations and be made available upon request. See also Management approach: Labor practices.
Under-aged workers in the supply chain
Electrolux uncovered 8 (24) cases of under-age workers (below 15 years) in the supply chain. The Group’s supplier audits reveal that issues relating to under-age labor are less prevalent than previous years. This is primarily a problem in Asia Pacific. The majority of cases recorded relate to insufficient protection of authorized minors (16-18 years). In dealing with under-aged workers, Electrolux puts the welfare of the child first, as described in Management approach: Human rights.
Forced and compulsory labor
Electrolux complies fully with California’s Transparency in Supply Chains Act and ensures that it is non-complicit in infringements in forced and bonded labor within its sphere of influence.
Security practices and indigenous rights
As stipulated in the Workplace Standard, the purpose of security guards is to ensure the safety of employees and protect the premises, not to stop employees from leaving the workplace.
Electrolux does not report on indigenous rights as these are not deemed to be among the most material issues to the company on the basis of the GRI Reporting Principles and according to Human Rights assessments conducted of its operations.
Assessment and remediation
All manufacturing sites, most warehouses and most offices carry out the Code of Conduct self-assessment, involving a high level review of human rights risk. Annually, Electrolux also conducts a risk assessment that forms the basis of the internal and supplier Code of Conduct audits (see SO2-4 Anti-corruption).
By year-end, 38 cases of suspected ethical misconduct had been reported in Latin America since the launch of the Ethics Helpline in June 2011. The geographical coverage of reporting will increase as the Ethics Program is rolled out over the next few years.