Indian Compliance laws for textile industry

Textile industry in India is a highly versatile sector, with smaller firms providing flexibility needed
for smaller orders; the larger firms have the capacity to service the world’s biggest buyers. The
Government of India has also undertaken several favourable policy initiatives, which have resulted
in the growth of the sector. “Indian textile industry contributes about 14 per cent to industrial
production, 4 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and 16.63 per cent to export
earnings,” as per Ministry of Commerce and Trade, India.
Major destination for Indian garment exports
The USA is the number one destination for the exports of Indian apparels. During 2011, the garment
imports to the USA from world were around US$ 81.51 billion. India exports garments of worth
US$ 3.53 billion to the USA, which accounts for 4.33 per cent share in the USA’s total garment
imports.
AEPC: An official body of apparel exporters
Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) is an official body of apparel exporters in India. The
body provides invaluable assistance to Indian exporters as well as international buyers who select
India as their preferred sourcing destination for garments.
"Initially we aim to bring in 400 factories under our ambit each year. This is a huge number as this
program is a first in the country and we will progress surely but cautiously," said Chandrima
Chatterjee, director, Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC).

AEPC- Disha Initiative-(Driving Industry towards Sustainable Human Capital Advancement)

AEPC in its continuous efforts to make India a preferred sourcing destination plans to undertake a
series of activities to strengthen the compliance code capacity in the Indian export garment industry.
Further, the project DISHA has been initiated with the aim to unify the Indian apparel
manufacturers for mutual co-operation, global alignment and resource optimisation. It also focuses
to create and adopt management systems to address human and environmental challenges.
Objectives of Disha programme
• To increase awareness among apparel manufacturers on social and environmental standards
based on applicable Indian laws
• To improve competitiveness of apparel manufacturers
• To promote a management system oriented thinking and approach for engaging with social
and environmental issues
• To promote a process-based certification system that enables measurement of progress
towards adoption and maintenance of benchmark practices in the Disha Common Code of
Conduct (Disha-CCC)
Major components of Disha
Environmental, social and safety related compliance issues are gong to assume increasing
importance in textiles and apparel sector as the competitiveness in the sector moves to new
emerging economies. Creating an environment for better compliance standards and improved social
sustainability of the industry can give India the required edge over its competitors in the global
market. Some of the major components of the program Disha are:
• Common Code of Conduct (CCC) AEPC-Disha’s common code of conduct is designed to
guide the Indian apparel manufacturers on legal, social and environmental issues. The
program establishes the principles for business responsibility, based on applicable Indian
laws and International labour organisation (ILO) conventions approved by the Government
of India.
• Factory Capacity Building & Training

 • The common code of conduct involves orientation for the owners of apparel factories and
capacity building for factory-nominated personnel on Disha-CCC and towards applying the
management systems for Disha-CCC.
• Baseline & Impact Assessment
• Initially, a factory shall undergo a pre intervention baseline assessment for gap analysis
against the Disha- Common Code of Conduct (CCC) principles and benchmarks.
Afterwards, post intervention assessments on operationalisation of the management systems
in the factory shall be undertaken.
• Disha Certification
• A Disha certificate shall be awarded to the factory by AEPC upon successful and
satisfactory implementation of the social and environmental management system.
Responsibilities of Disha member factory
DISHA member factory is committed to adhere to the DISHA common code of conduct (CCC)
Principle on child labour and takes the responsibility to:
• Understand and identify applicable laws and acts
• Understand general industry practices and perception
• Establish management systems for sustenance and continual improvement
Disha-CCC for child labour
Disha- common code of conduct (CCC) is based on various central and state laws. Some of the laws
that specify conditions on the subject of employment of children and young persons are as follows:
• No child who has not completed fourteenth year of age shall be required or allowed to work
in any occupation in the factory
• Persons who have completed fourteenth, but not eighteenth, year of age are not employed in
hazardous or dangerous operations
• No female young person shall be required or allowed to work in any factory except between
8.00 A.M. and 7.00 P.M
• Young people are required to work only after obtaining a ‘certificate of fitness’ from a
government medical officer not below the rank of an Assistant Surgeon. The fee for
obtaining this certificate would be borne by the factory
By implementing DISHA CCC, it will be possible for the DISHA Member Factory to establish
factory compliance to adhere to Indian laws, re-frame policies and better practices aimed at
improving social.
Compliance of Indian Garment Industry.

Compliance Audit
Audits and assessments provide vital management control for Process Safety Management, Process
Security Management, and Risk Management Programs. Audits focus on the policies and
procedures to verify compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards. They help to
ensure programs are properly designed and implemented. Further, audits also identify program
deficiencies so that recommendations can be developed for corrective action.
Compliance Audit in India includes an examination of rules, regulations, orders and instructions for
their legality, adequacy, transparency and prudence. Auditors gather information through visual
observation at the site, document reviews and interviews of staff. This data is then compared to the
applicable permits and regulations to evaluate how well the operation is conforming to the
applicable legal requirements.
Phases of Audit
There are three main phases of compliance audit in India:

 • Pre-audit: It includes planning and organising the audit; establishing the audit objectives,
scope and etiquette; and reviewing the design of the program by inspecting documentation
• On-site audit: It includes conducting personnel interviews, reviewing records, and making
observations to assess program implementation
• Post-audit: It includes briefing the management on audit findings, and preparing a final
report
Therefore, Indian apparel manufacturers need to follow Government guidelines, and social
compliance standards not only within their sphere of operations, but also insist their vendors,
distributors, and other collaborators involved in the supply chain to do the same.
Core labour standards
• Elimination of Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation
• Freedom of Association
• Right to Collective Bargaining
• Elimination of all Forms of Forced or Compulsory Labour
• Effective Abolition of Child Labour

Common compliance code

“This common compliance code will not only give the opportunity for the industry to negate
international claims against child labour promotion in the garment industry, but will also help to
improve the image of the industry and win more international businesses,” as per Premal Udani,
Chairman, Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC).

Social responsibility in the garment industry

Just like the firms in other industries, garment firms also have social responsibility associated with
employees and the environment. Social responsibility in the global apparel industry provides an in-
depth examination of labour practices and standards. However, the ways by which different
organisations choose to fulfil their social responsibility might be different. A garment factory can
fulfil its social responsibility in the following manner:
• By providing a competitive and challenging work environment to the employees
• By having ethical recruitment, remuneration, promotion and other policies
• By providing opportunities to the employees to voice their opinion and complaints and have
an effective policy for the solution of these complaints
• Ensuring a safe working environment for the employees
• Ensuring not to adopt child or forced labour in the industry
• Having fair policies for the solution of employee disputes

Health and safety compliance of Indian garment industry.

Need for compliance codes

There is a direct impact of social compliance on company’s financial results, especially for
organisations in consumer market where brand name and reputation are most critical assets.
Companies should adopt compliance code to protect their goodwill in the market. The Indian
garment industry needs to be tough on compliance rather than competing with other developing
countries manufacturing inexpensive garments.
Compliance code guidelines

 Garment factory should consider the following guidelines while complying with safety and health
compliance code standards:
• Industries should comply with international standard code, such as ISO or importing
countries standard code to become competitive in international markets
• Young persons (between 15 to 18 years) are not supposed to work on any dangerous
machine without adequate training and supervision
• Wiring should be in good condition with no broken junctions or wires sticking out at the
ends of the conduit
• Eye-wear and face shields should be provided in areas with danger of flying objects, sparks,
glare, hazardous liquids and excessive dust
• Ear plugs or muffs should be given in places with excessive noise such as generator rooms
and embroidery rooms
• Hard hats and protective shoes are necessary for workers involved in loading and unloading
operations
• Factories should have effective fire extinguisher with proper usage instructions

Compliance Laws of Cap America

At Cap America we are dedicated to continuous monitoring of our factories to assure the highest
standards of social, environmental and quality management systems. For more information contact
your Cap America Customer Service Representative.
Our Company believes we must not only meet the expectations of our customers and consumers, we
must exceed those expectations. To that end, we have adopted standards for the safety, quality and
integrity of our products and processes and we are committed to respecting the rights of individuals
and protecting the environment. We are dedicated to complying with all applicable laws and to
conduct business in an ethical and responsible manner

 Product Safety
The Company will comply with all applicable laws and regulations regarding safety of products we
sell. We will meet applicable recognized voluntary industry standards for our products and
processes.

No Abuse Of Labor
The Company will not use any form of forced labor, including indentured, prison, bonded or slave
labor. We will not use physical or verbal harassment or abuse to discipline employees.
No Child Labor
The Company will not use child labor. We will comply with all minimum age provisions of
applicable laws and regulations.
Freedom Of Association
The Company respect the rights of employees to associate or organize without fear of reprisal or
interference. If employees are represented by an organization recognized under law, we respect the
right to bargain collectively.
No Discrimination
The Company will not discriminate in hiring and employment practices on the basis of age,
nationality, race, religion, social or ethnic orientation, gender or disability.
Hours And Wages
We will comply with all applicable wage, work hours, hiring, benefits, and overtime laws and
regulations. In the absence of law in a particular location relating to product safety, labor,
employment, environment or working conditions, the spirit and intent of these policies shall be met.
Workplace Conditions
The Company will provide a safe, healthy and secure workplace. We will abide by all applicable
laws and regulations for safety and health. Proper sanitation, lighting, ventilation and fire safety
protection will be provided.
Product Recall Information
The Company currently do not have any products affected by a recall. However, our customers'
safety and satisfaction is of the utmost importance so we have created this page to house all
information in the case of a future product recall.