NZ to lead the world with first ‘Child Labor Free’ accreditation system with help from Saatchis NZ

A group of NZ social entrepreneurs – ‘Child Labor Free’ (CLF) – are launching a new global accreditation system today in time for the UN International Day Against Child Labor that will allow companies across all product categories to have their supply chains independently certified as ‘Child Labor Free’. Qualifying businesses will be able to display a mark of certification, communicating where their brand is on the journey to becoming child labor free.

CLF is working with Ernst & Young (EY) who are leading the supply chain analysis component of the accreditation system. CLF will also be collaborating with a range of other accreditation partners in future to continue driving innovation across the accreditation process. Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand has been engaged by CLF since August last year, providing business strategy, branding and communications consultancy. CLF is also taking expert guidance from child rights organisations on how to provide sustainable alternatives to child labor and to ensure children, families and communities are supported along the way.

Says Michelle Pratt, CEO and founder of Child Labor Free: “Today is world day against child labor. It might not be something people are even thinking about, but right now there are actually 150 million children around the world, laboring across almost every industry you can think of. We want to be able to give companies and consumers the opportunity to positively impact the issue directly, simply by choosing the child labor free mark.

“At a time when consumers are asking for greater transparency from brands and supply chain management is becoming ever more complex, this system will support brands as they work back through their supply chains – to certify their products at a manufacturing level, component level and eventually all the way to their source materials. From the consumer’s perspective, the mark will give them the information they need to make an informed choice. Effectively, our approach is about enabling conscious consumerism. In the same way that we have come to expect ‘cruelty free’ as an industry norm in beauty, or actively seek out ‘organic’ or ‘free range’ produce in our supermarkets, we believe that ‘Child Labor Free’ needs to become a globally recognised standard.

“One thing we really want to stress is that this is a positive movement for change. We want to celebrate those brands that come on the journey with us. This is a highly complex issue, and for a company to come out today and say they’re prepared to take this first step with us, is a bold move, but one we believe their consumers will reward them for.”

Says Nikki Prendergast, co-founder and director, on how the initiative had come about: “Child Labor Free came to life two years ago when we were made aware of something that hit at the heart of our own commercial operation. After attending an early childhood conference, we learned about the prevalence of child labor and its presence in almost every industry, including our own. This led us to the question: ‘How do we know the toys we’re sourcing for children here in New Zealand, haven’t been made by children somewhere else in the world?’ We needed to be able to stand behind our own products and verify our supply chains, but when we went looking for a system to give us that assurance, we couldn’t find it. Given our working lives have been dedicated to the wellbeing of children, this just didn’t feel right to us. So in true intrepid kiwi style, we set about creating the system ourselves which we are making available for any business in New Zealand, or globally, to provide certainty around their supply chain.

“This started a journey that has taken us around the world, consulting with some of the biggest brands and experts on the issues of labor, accreditation systems and of course, the protection of children. In preparing the product for market, we started by looking at our supply chain – that’s when we approached Starex Furniture, who became our beta testing partners while we stress-tested the proprietary software developed with our technology partner, Greg Garratt.

“We are now working through a pilot phase with a group of New Zealand fashion brands in preparation for a consumer launch later in the year happening in partnership with

New Zealand Fashion Week (NZFW). These pilot partners currently include: Hailwood, Kate Sylvester, Nom*D, RUBY and Stolen Girlfriends Club. They’ll be working with us as consultants, helping to refine the accreditation system as well as documenting and sharing their journey with the industry and customers along the way. Becoming accredited will take some time. It’s the beginning of what will likely be a challenging but rewarding journey.

“Beyond this group, we are currently also in conversation with local and global brands from a broad range of industries including apparel, textiles, furniture, consumables, toys, cleaning products, skincare and automotive. We’ve been overwhelmed by the positive interest we’ve received from both New Zealand and major multinational. It’s clear there is a need out there for this system. We’ll have more news and brand names to announce soon.

“The ultimate solution to this issue goes far beyond an accreditation system of course, but what the system stands for – honesty, transparency and ethics is what we believe will drive the real change.”

Says Dr Amabel Hunting, an expert in consumer behaviour and ethical consumption from Auckland University: “While ethical consumers were once considered a niche group, recent research has found an increasing number of consumers across the market are concerned about these issues. This is especially true among the younger generation; they care about how workers are treated and will reward brands that share information on their supply chain. An inability to respond to this issue means businesses will miss out on this future market and potentially alienate their existing customers. There is currently a significant gap between what customers expect and what most businesses are delivering, so I believe this system is well timed to help brands meet this need.”

The system launches in New Zealand today.

More information is available at www.childlaborfree.com.