Transparency
Integrity, Accountability & Fairness From Start to Finish
The Fairtrade system is not only fair, but also highly accountable. It's a privilege for RREPP to be working with supply chains that have social & environmental justice at the core of their mission statements, especially in industries where worker exploitation and child labour continue to be a hidden issue.
Our Cotton
RREPP sources 100% of its Organic Fairtrade cotton from Chetna Organics in India (NPOP & NOP Organic certification).
Chetna works with over 35,000 farmers (70% men and 30% women) in the rainfed regions of Odisha, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, with over 43,000 acres of certified organic land under its stewardship.
Its vision since 2004 has been to lift smallholder rural cotton farmers out of historically ingrained poverty by providing a working model towards enhanced living standards, whilst promoting sustainability through social, environmental and economic initiatives.
CHETNA ORGANICS
3-5-704/4, Old MLA Quarters
Vittalwadi, Narayanguda, Hyderbad
Telangana 50029 India
WHY ORGANIC COTTON?
Not only is organic cotton healthier for our bodies (especially our kids’), it’s also cleaner, safer for our farmers to grow and better for the environment. Here’s what we’ve achieved through our certified organic cotton growing initiative…
Our farmers and stitchers
Outside the spinning of our organic cotton by Sagar Manufacturers Pvt Ltd, all our manufacturing processes are carried out by Rajlakshmi Cotton Mills (RCM) in India, or other Indian-based businesses under their scope.
Rajlakshmi Cotton Mills, rcm-organic.com,
FMC Fortuna 4th Floor, 234/3A A.J.C. Bose
Road Kolkata 700 020 India
RCM's ethical accreditations include FLOCERT (Fairtrade International), SA8000, Global Organic Textile Standard, and Fairtrade USA.
'LIVING WAGES' as a minimum are paid to RCM's lowest paid workers. These wage benchmarks are reviewed every 6 months and align with those devised by the Global Living Wage Coalition (partners with Fairtrade International), as well as living wage pioneers Richard & Martha Anker. LIVING WAGE calculations based on food are also performed via the Food Basket Survey by an NGO called ‘Deprive People’.
Most of RCM’s stitcher families live in rural areas outside of Kolkata where they have the benefit of owning agricultural land and growing and raising their own agricultural food as well as poultry, cows, and goats. Cost of living in rural areas of India is also substantially less than in urban areas.
The Global Living Wage Coalitions calculation for Rural Workers Living Wage is approximately 14000 Rs per month with their Urban Worker Living Wage calculation estimated at 18000 Rs per month. Both contrast markedly from India’s legal minimum wage requirement of less than 10000 Rs per month which cannot sustain the lives of most Indian families.
RCM pays it stitchers a rural living wage of 14000 Rs per month, combined with the following added monthly extras as part of a larger wage package: Monthly bonus 2170 Rs / Food Subsidy 312 Rs / Annual Leave 708 Rs / Festival Leave 661 Rs / Transportation 600 Rs / Labour Welfare 3 Rs / Provident Fund for retirement 514 Rs / Pension for Family post-retirement 1166 Rs / Gratuity post-retirement or resignation after 5 years of employment 673 Rs / Medical for employee and family 553 Rs
So, in total RCM’s full-time stitchers combined wage package adds an extra 50%+ to their salary which brings it up to 21360 Rs per month. This is over 100% above India’s legal minimum wage which is what most non-Fairtrade garment manufacturers pay their workers, and is the reason why so many workers families in the garment manufacturing industry globally remain in poverty.
OUR SPORTS BALL SUPPLY CHAIN
Our sports ball supply chain in Pakistan is 100% Fairtrade certified. More than 70% of our sports ball stitchers working in our factories are members of a union with all stitching and manufacturing processes taking place in-house with nil outsourcing. RREPP’s factories are fully audited by Fairtrade.
Through our Fairtrade certification, RREPP's lowest paid sports ball stitchers are paid a wage package that exceeds the Global Living Wage Coalitions wage calculation for the Sialkot region in Pakistan. The Total Living Wage package for RREPP's lowest paid Fairtrade ball stitchers and workers equates to $212.20 USD per month and is made up of the following income and benefits (averaged out per month) for a full time worker:
Wage $150.00 USD
Benefit from onsite subsidised Fairtrade Grocery Shop $4.00 USD
Filtered water for families and the local community $39.00 USD
Annual eye checks $1.00 USD
Annual diabetes checks $0.20 USD
Transport provided to and from work $17.00 USD
School kits (books, bags, stationary) provided for workers kids $1.00 USD
Our Sports Ball manufacturer outsources its raw materials from other countries. Please refer to our Modern Slavery Statement here for details on the Fairtrade standards complied to, which ensure that environmental, social and quality standards are met.
RREPP AND OUR PARTNER’S CERTIFICATIONS
RREPP and our partners are assessed, certified & regularly audited by the world’s leading social & environmental certification bodies.
