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August 2010

President’s Message

Our newsletter has a new look. But the real change is in the approach, not the appearance. While we've refined the design, we've also expanded the content to include a Members’ Corner so that our stakeholders can contribute information about their own ethical manufacturing activities, ideas and experiences. With this added feature, we are pleased to offer you a new forum to communicate directly about the ICTI CARE Process. Please submit short articles and photos to secretariat@icti-care.org.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Christian Ewert,
President and CEO

Joint Declaration on Audit Integrity Issues Signed

The ICTI CARE Foundation and several Chinese toy industry organizations recently signed a “Joint Declaration on Integrity Issues in Toy Industry Audits”. In light of reported attempts to influence social audit results, signatories set out to reinforce their previously held position of zero tolerance and to promote further factory understanding of the objectives and operations of the toy industry auditing program.

Forging closer alliances will enable us to pool experiences, and leverage on each other’s strengths so that we can achieve long- term success for the toy industry’s ethical manufacturing program.

One of the highlights of the declaration is its emphasis upon a Continuous Improvement Process whereby factories initially unable to meet ICTI CARE Process standards will be given the opportunity to make improvements over time, provided they are transparent about working conditions.

Organizations that signed the declaration include: The ICTI CARE Foundation, China Toy Association, Hong Kong Toys Council, The Toy Manufacturers’ Association of Hong Kong, Guangdong Province Toys Association, Shenzhen Toys Industry Association, and the Dongguan Toys Association of China. To read the declaration click here.

ICTI CARE Foundation Biennial Report Now Available

We are pleased to announce the release of new report, "Creating Continuous Improvement in the Workplace", a Review of ICTI CARE Process Activities 2008/9. To read or download the report click here.

Enablon to Build New IT Database System

The ICTI CARE Foundation Asia Ltd. has approved the purchase of a new IT database system from ENABLON SA of France. The new system will not only optimize internal ICTI CARE Process processes with new data mining features, the brands and retailers will also be able to use the system to access their suppliers and learn about the factory’s status in greater detail. VP of Operations, Ian Anderson, noted that, “We are very excited about the new IT system which will help us to better identify the challenges in implementing our program and to meet the specific education and training needs of the factories”. The system is expected to go live after Chinese New Year 2011.

Chinese Material Increases Website Traffic 50%

During the second quarter of 2010, the ICFAL team translated relevant ICTI CARE Process (ICP) policy, application and declaration documents into Chinese which are now posted on two new sections on the ICP website---one for Chinese factory managers and one for the workers. During this time, the website saw a 50% increase over the first quarter of 2010 reflecting the Chinese audience’s strong interest to receive more information about the ICTI CARE Process program and its requirements. Click here to view the Chinese factory manager and factory worker information.

ICP Presentation at GTZ and MSAS Conference

Market Supervision and Administration Shenzhen (MSAS) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbet (GTZ) invited Christian Ewert to present at their jointly organized June 30th conference on toy safety and quality. This event afforded an excellent opportunity to update 300 Chinese toy manufacturers on recent ICTI CARE Process (ICP) developments such as the new Continuous Improvement Process, ICP education and training activities and remaining projects for 2010 including: the new RFP for audit firms, revisions to the current ICP checklist and implementation of the new IT database system.

Members’ Corner

Article by Daniel Aboaf, Federation Française Des Industries Jouet-Puériculture (FJP)

Like other national associations, we were honored to invite Christian Ewert to our FJP AGM in June in Paris to present an update and outlook for 2010. It was a great opportunity to meet all our members (French manufacturers) and to explain clearly what the ICTI CARE PROCESS is, and why so many companies support this program. He presented figures regarding factory monitoring (number of registered factories, seal of compliance, audits conducted) and gave additional information on the ICTI CARE Process Education and Training Program.

The Chinese ICP website was also introduced as well as the members of the Governance Board.

The members really appreciated the presentation and some of them took the opportunity to discuss directly with Christian Ewert for further contact.

Upcoming Events

September 29-30: Suisse Toy (Switzerland)
September 30: International Toy Fair (Czech Republic)

July 2010

ICTI CARE Foundation Biennial Report Now Available

We are pleased to announce the release of our new report, "Creating Continuous Improvement in the Workplace", a Review of ICTI CARE Process Activities 2008/9. To read or download the report click here.

June 2010

ICTI CARE Foundation Governance Board Meets in New York City

On June 6-7, fourteen ICTI CARE Foundation Governance Board members, representing the toy industry across the U.S., Europe and Asia, the NGO community and the public and private sector, met in New York City for their second board meeting of 2010. A representative from the newly formed Technical Advisory Council (TAC) also attended the meeting as an Observer. On the agenda were items ranging from a review of progress since the January 2010 board meeting, implementation of the new Wages and Working Hours policy, the Date Certain Program and training and education program, to the labor situation in China.

The next board meeting will take place in January 2011 in Hong Kong.

First Meeting of Technical Advisory Council Convened

ICFAL Operations in Hong Kong has added three new members to the team since January.  These highly qualified individuals who are helping to advance the objectives of the ICTI CARE Process are:

Queenie Chan Wing Yan joined as an Assistant Training Manager in March 2010.  She is responsible for developing and monitoring the Education & Training Program for factory corporate social responsibility, and actively engaging factories, NGOs, industry associations, and other relevant stakeholders, in order to build synergies for high quality and effective training projects. Queenie previously worked on CSR issues for international companies, has experience in social compliance auditing and factory improvement project management, and participated in various Social Service Programs, e.g., counseling hotlines and rehabilitation training.

Rachel Kwok joined in Feb 2010 as a Social Compliance Supervisor and is based in Hong Kong. She has two years experience as a Compliance Officer with Marketing Store Worldwide (Asia) Limited and spent one year as a Compliance Coordinator at the Newtimes Development Limited.  Rachel has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology and holds certificates as an SA8000 Lead Auditor.

Liu Jia joined in Jan 2010 as an Area Manager based in Shenzhen, has five years of production management experience with the ESQUEL Group and more than two years productivity consultancy and audit experience at Impactt.  LJ has a Bachelor Degree in Polyester Engineering.  He is qualified as Health and Safety Supervisor by Guangzhou City Health and Safety Bureau (2007) and holds the Registered Qualification Certificate Certified Safety Engineer approved and authorized by State Administration of Work Safety in the PRC.

February 2010

 
The ICTI CARE Foundation’s Governance Board met in Hong Kong on 13-14 January, in conjunction with the Hong Kong Toy & Games Fair. The board’s focus was on a series of measures intended to strengthen further the effectiveness of the ICTI CARE Process, as it enters its sixth year of operation. These include:

• Entering into an 18-month Public-Private Partnership with GTZ, the German development agency, which will allow the ICTI CARE Process to fulfill its goal of developing and expanding its education and capacity-building program for toy factories. Over this period, beginning this month, the ICP will design and deliver a pilot train-the-trainer program to eight factories that will be expanded broadly in subsequent years. The program’s objective is to improve access to information, training and support relating to compliance with health, labor and safety standards for toy factory workers in China. The German toy association, DVSI was most helpful in gaining this assignment and the China Toy Association will be an important partner in the realization of the project.
  
  
• The new Wages and Working Hours policy, which has been evolving over the past six months, and that gives factories the opportunity to enter into a continuous improvement process as they work toward full compliance with Chinese law, has been approved. Granted only to factories that agree to be completely transparent about their past practices, this will avoid immediate disqualification of a factory and permit it to enter into an agreement to make monitored, steady progress over a fixed period of time.
  
  
• The first in a series of workshops that brought together toy brands, manufacturers, retailers and audit firms to discuss ways to strengthen the integrity of the social compliance audit process.
  
  
• Those committed to the Date Certain Program will now be asked to confirm their commitment and to certify the degree of compliance achieved to date in a program extension just approved by the Board. Compliance with this commitment is a requirement for continued membership in some national toy associations.
  
  
• In 2010 the ICTI CARE Process will step up its communications program to  include an Annual Report 2009, more news flashes, etc.. There will also be direct stakeholder communication with factories, toy brands (date Certain members), retailers, licensors, Non Governmental Organizations and other interested parties.

The next Governance Board meeting will be held in New York in June. Photo of the January meeting attendees below:

ICFAL and GTZ Hold Kick Off Meeting to Launch Public Private Partnership Project
 
ICTI CARE Foundation Asia Ltd. (ICFAL) and Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), a German development agency, held a kick off meeting at GTZ’s Beijing office on January 25th to launch a public private partnership project (PPP Project). A pilot train-the-trainer program for factory workers and managers will be jointly developed and delivered in eight factories and then subsequently rolled out to other factories in the ICTI CARE Process, over time. DVSI, the German Toy Association, will be GTZ's cooperation partner while ICFAL will be the implementing partner for the project in China.
 
Christian Ewert stated, “We are very grateful for the support provided by GTZ for this initiative and look forward to collaborating with all of the project partners.  This PPP will allow the ICTI CARE Foundation to significantly advance its training and education objectives aimed at supporting the development of China’s toy industry and the capacity of its factory workers and managers to comply with health,  safety and labor standards.”
 
As part of the training program, support and coaching for in-factory training will be provided by ICFAL and its training partners, training videos will be developed, and confidential hotline services and worker’s information cards will be made available to factory workers.
 
Mr. Rolf Dietmar, Director of the Sino-German Corporate Social Responsibility Project, commented that the conceptual approach of the project includes crucial factors that will ensure its success and sustainability. Firstly, the project relies on the active participation and support of the China Toy Association; secondly the trainings are aimed at reaching both workers and managers of selected pilot factories.

During the kick-off meeting, experts from ICFAL and GTZ provided insights to further topics of importance for the toy industry, e.g. the safety and quality of products produced in China, harmonization and unification of standards in Europe and Asia, etc.

Some key participants present at the GTZ kick off meeting included: Christian Ewert, CEO of the ICTI CARE Foundation, Ms. Ban Lee, Director of Operations, ICFAL; Ms. Romina Laumann, PPP-Project Manager GTZ Germany; Mr. Rolf Dietmar, GTZ China, Sino-German Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Project; Mr. Joerg Binding, GTZ China, Sino-German Consumer Protection and Product Safety Program, Ms. Cui Zheng, China International Center for Economic & Technical Exchanges, and Ms. May Liang, Executive VP, China Toy Association.

January 2010

Australians Seek to Strengthen ICTI CARE Process Commitment

Bringing more Australian toy brands into the ICTI CARE Process was the goal of a meeting between representatives of the Australian Toy Association (ATA) and the ICTI CARE Process in Hong Kong on 11 January. Michael Keaton of LEGO Australia, Beverly Jenkin of the Australian Toy Association and Christian Ewert, Ian Anderson and Ban Lee of ICF/ICFAL discussed ways to bring more Australian Toy Association members into the Date Certain fold, committing to source product only from ICTI CARE Process certified factories as of a specific future date ("Date Certain"). All concerned were quite positive about the opportunity for success. A number of activities are being planned for 2010.

Pictured below in the ICFAL office in Star House in Kowloon are (left to right) Christian Ewert, President/CEO of the ICTI CARE Foundation; Ban Lee, Director of Operations, ICFAL; ATA Board Member Michael Keaton of LEGO Australia; Beverly Jenkin, CEO of the ATA; and Ian Anderson, Vice President, Operations, ICFAL.

Auchan Group Recognizes the ICTI CARE Process

Auchan Group, the major France-based retailer, has just signed a memorandum of understanding recognizing ICTI CARE Process certification as meeting their ethical sourcing requirements. Auchan Group includes 515 hypermarkets in 13 countries, with an additional 740 wholly-owned supermarkets in five countries. And through its Immochan subsidiary it manages 297 shopping centres in 12 countries.

Alain Mulliez, International Toy Convergence Manager of Auchan, said “This recognition gives Auchan a serious lever to increase its requirement for compliance with its ethical principles. We intend to share with the ICTI CARE Process our will to improve our common social responsibility.”

Christian Ewert, President/CEO of the ICTI CARE Foundation, observed that "We are very happy that we were able to sign the MOU with Auchan. I am encouraged and optimistic that this acceptance of the ICTI Code of Business Practices will encourage others to follow this step to ensure better conditions for workers in the toy industry supply chain."

Pictured below at the signing the MOU are (left to right) Mr. Christian Ewert, M. Alain Mulliez and Ms. Juliette Bataille, Social Audits Coordination.

September 2009

ICFAL Hires New Director of Operations Asia
 
We are excited to announce the appointment of M/s Ban Lee Ying Chuan to the position of Director of Operations, ICTI CARE Foundation Asia, Ltd. (ICFAL), reporting to Ian Anderson, Vice President, Operations, ICTI CARE Asia.
 
Ban Lee joined ICFAL's Hong Kong office on 31 August and is responsible for operations activities, education and training under Mr. Anderson's guidance. Mr. Anderson continues to report to ICTI CARE Process President and CEO, Christian Ewert.
 
Prior to joining us, Ban Lee was Impactt Limited’s Country Director, China, based in Guangzhou, where she managed the strategic development of the organization's China operations.
 
She will be a real asset to this important part of ICFAL's mission and we are delighted to have her on our Hong Kong team.

June 2009

ICF Holds its Annual General Meeting and Governance Board meeting in Munich

The ICTI CARE Foundation held its Annual General Meeting and its semi-annual Governance Board meeting in Munich, Germany, on 4-5 June. At the Annual General Meeting, the eight original Directors were elected to a second, three-year term. These include Maria Livanos Cattaui, Amir Dossal, Peter Eio, Alan Hassenfeld, Gary Hutchens, Alan Munn, Jane Nelson and T.S. Wong. This maintains the total number of directors at 15. Mme. Cattaui and Mr. Hassenfeld were re-elected as Co-Chairs of the Board. Representatives from the Technical Advisory Board of the ICTI CARE Process also were present at the Governance Board meeting.

Highlighted at the meeting was the number of factories that have registered in and been accredited to the ICTI CARE Process-- 1,961 registered and 834 accredited -- the number of audits that have been carried out and the fact that the certified fatories represented about 75% of the world toy business. It was also noted that there are now approximately 11 major retailers that have signed, or are in the process of finalizing, MOUs that formally recognize the ICTI CARE Process-- the latest being Marks and Spencer.

The focus of the meeting was on experience-based improvements to the ICTI CARE Process, particularly in the areas of Wages and Working Hours policy and the Date Certain program. It was agreed that Continuous Improvement and Capacity Building Programs for factories would be started at the beginning of July and that a new system for ensuring compliance with the Date Certain program would be put into effect as soon as possible.

The Board also agreed to a broadening of its education and training programs and an expansion of its communications efforts to all stakeholders.

The next full meeting of the Governance Board will be in Hong Kong in January 2010.

May 2009

VEDES AG First German Trade Association to Join ICTI CARE Process

VEDES AG, a leading trade organization for toys and games based in Nuremberg, Germany, signed the ICTI CARE Process (ICP) Date Certain pledge mid-April becoming the first German toy purchasing and retail association to do so. They already source approximately 85% of their private label product from ICP factories and are committed to sourcing only from ICP factories in the future. The organization has also pledged financial support over the next three years becoming a "Silver" category contributor.

The Date Certain pledge was signed in the presence of the ICP President and CEO, Mr. Christian Ewert, who acknowledged the importance of having this trade organization on board. Ewert stated, "We are very pleased that after only three constructive meetings with Dr. Thomas Märtz, CEO, VEDES AG, that this agreement could be reached. Financial support to the ICTI CARE Foundation is of special significance and we hope this will send a positive signal that others in the industry will follow."

Giochi Preziosi S.p.A. Signs Date Certain Pledge and Becomes an ICP Supporter
Giochi Preziosi S.p.A., is Italy’s largest toy company, and the fourth largest toy operator in the world, with subsidiaries in the key European markets and in the USA. On April 24th, it signed the ICTI CARE Process Pledge at its headquarters in Cogliate, Italy. The company’s CEO, Mr. Dario Berté, welcomed the Group's entrance in the ICTI CARE Process recognizing it as an important tool for the toy industry to ensure fair and safe working conditions in its factories. Both organizations cooperated closely over the two years prior to the signing of the Date Certain Pledge.

The Preziosi Group produces and distributes a vast range of toys both in Italy and abroad and its activity spans through many different industries like – for example – food, apparel, shoes and back to school products.

The ICTI CARE Foundation CEO, Mr. Christian Ewert, said that “We are delighted to welcome a prestigious company like Giochi Preziosi into the ICTI CARE Process. We not only appreciate their commitment to the toy industry’s ethical manufacturing program, but also their financial commitment to the ICTI CARE Process”. Giochi Preziosi S.p.A. has become a “Gold” category supporter to the ICTI CARE Foundation.”

Hong Kong Toy Council Holds ICTI CARE Process Training Workshops
The Hong Kong Toy Council organized three ICTI CARE Process training workshops during April and May to familiarize its members with the new requirements of the ICTI CARE Process “Code of Business Practices” and to launch their new guidance book formulated with ICTI CARE support. Over 150 industry members participated at the workshops. The book is now available from the Hong Kong Toy Council (hktc@fhki.org.hk) and the Federation of Hong Kong Industries (fhki@fhki.org.hk) at a cost of HK$150 (US$19.35). It is accompanied by a wall chart (poster) and a second booklet entitled, “ICTI CARE Process guideline.” We recommend this book as required reading for all who take their corporate compliance seriously and want to understand correct implementation of the ICTI CARE Process.

New Fee Structure for Audits
The ICTI CARE Foundation announced its new fee structure to take effect for all audits from June 1st 2009. The new structure will create a single man day rate for all members of the program thereby removing an anomaly that existed between old and new participants. The new rate of US$575 per man day will be charged by all eight of the ICTI CARE Process accredited service providers whose continuing support is greatly appreciated.

March 2009

People on the Move
Jonas Astrup, Director Operations of ICFAL since August 2008,left on March 20 to accept a new position in South Africa. Recruitment for a replacement is currently underway. In the meantime, we are pleased to announce that Senior Advisor, Ian Anderson, has agreed to manage the day-to-day operations until the end of June.

Job Opening: Director of Asia Operations
ICTI CARE Foundation Asia Ltd. is seeking a new Director of Asia Operations. The position is located in Hong Kong. To learn more about the requirements of the job, click here. Interested applicants should submit, in word or PDF format only, a full CV and a cover letter that clearly addresses the qualifications criteria to ian.anderson@icti-care.org.

Seminar Tackles Social Compliance Challenges in China
On March 11, INFACT conducted the first of its seminars in New York City as part of its China Social Compliance Leadership Series.  Taking part in the program were more than 65 social compliance executives from the toy, apparel, footwear, sporting goods, retail, and other industry, sectors.

The seminar covered the root causes of social compliance issues important to brands and retailers manufacturing in China such as excessive working hours, underpayment of legal wages and lack of transparency.  Participants acknowledged that auditing alone is not enough and explored ideas for possible solutions such as transforming buying practices and alternative compliance models.  An emerging trend towards developing capacity building, transparency, and continuous improvement programs (CIPs) was highlighted and viewed positively by many participants.

Christian Ewert, President and CEO of the ICTI CARE Foundation, one of the seminar sponsors, said, “The seminar series is providing valuable insights and potential solutions to some of the most pressing social compliance issues in China.  We encourage everyone who is interested to accelerate progress in this area to participate”.

China Social Compliance Leadership Series
The ICTI CARE Process is one of the sponsors of this innovative seminar series on China Social Compliance. The seminars are organized by INFACT Global Partners and aim to help social compliance executives to understand China's key social compliance challenges, reduce audit frequency and costs, improve supplier performance and reduce brand risk. The events will take place in New York (March 11), Los Angeles (March 18), Taipei (April 14) and Shenzhen (April 17). For further information, please see: http://www.infactory-solutions.com/leadership-series/.

ICTI CARE Conducts Auditor Training
On February 18-20, the ICTI CARE Process conducted the 7th session of its IRCA approved training for social compliance auditors. The training took place in Shenzhen, China and was led by Joseph Lok, Training and Compliance Manager of the ICTI CARE Process. In order to conduct audits for the ICTI CARE Process, an auditor must be employed by an accredited audit service provider and have gone through the ICTI CARE auditor training and passed the exam. All results are verified by an independent third-party organization. For a full list of accredited audit firms and individual auditors, please see: List of Accredited Companies

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ICTI CARE Foundation Governance Board Meets in Hong Kong
The The ICTI CARE Foundation Governance Board met in Hong Kong in mid-January to set its priorities for 2009. At the top of the list are expanded efforts to obtain recognition of the ICTI CARE Process by European brands and retailers, along with a commitment to buy only from factories with an ICTI CARE Process Seal of Compliance. It also plans to begin outreach efforts to manufacturers located in countries other than China.

In other business, the Board named Kenneth Ting Woo-Shou, who received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008 from the Hong Kong Toys Manufacturers' Association, a new member of the Governance Board. 

The Governance Board also met with representatives of its eight accredited audit firms to discuss social compliance. Discussions were also held with representatives of the Technical Advisory Boards for the Americas, Europe and Asia to discuss industry challenges.

The Board will meet again June 4th and 5th in Munich, Germany.

Five New Members Join ICTI CARE Foundation Governance Board
The ICTI CARE Foundation welcomed five new Governance Board members in 2008. They are Jean-Louis Berchet, George Irwin, Geoff Massingberd, Paul Rice and Pär Stenbäck. These new additions help fulfill requirements that the board include representatives from civil society, non-governmental organizations and industry. Full biographies of all board members are on our ‘Who We Are’ page.

German Toy Association Makes Date Certain a Requirement for All Members
The German Toy Association (Deutscher Verband der Spielwaren Industrie - DVSI) decided at its last Annual General Meeting to make participation in the ICTI CARE Process Date Certain program mandatory for membership effective January 1, 2009.

The Date Certain Program is an integral part of the ICTI CARE Process. It aims to obtain commitments from toy brands and retailers that their buyers, at a specific, future date will only contract product manufactured by factories that are in the ICTI CARE Process. Date Certain companies have committed themselves to buy only from factories that are in the ICTI CARE Process and either have a Seal of Compliance or have completed the first audit and have agreed to a Corrective Action Plan to address any identified violation.

DVSI joins Denmark, Sweden and the US, as the fourth ICTI member that has passed this type of resolution. This commitment strengthens the ICTI CARE Process and unifies the German toy industry around ethical manufacturing.

The ICTI CARE Foundation recently released its 2007 annual review report,“Creating Sustainable Change in the Workplace”. The report highlights the strategy behind the ICTI CARE Process as well as the progress this initiative has made towards achieving safe and humane conditions for toy factory workers. We welcome your feedback. View Report.