The International Apparel Federation (IAF) and the International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) launched the Standard Convergence Initiative (SCI), which aims to align brand/retailer proprietary standards and third-party standards in four key areas to help the textile and footwear industry fight growing audit fatigue.
The urgent need to improve working conditions in the worldwide textile and footwear sector has been brought to light by preventable and catastrophic incidents as well as reports of the prevalence of child and forced labor. Third-party and brand/retailer proprietary standards have multiplied in an effort to alleviate the dilemma, and as a result, manufacturers and suppliers are now subject to various audits for standards that only slightly different. The International Trade Center’s (ITC) Standards Map was used by the SCI to examine the degree to which standards are prepared to converge across four important areas. In particular, the amfori BSCI, Fair Labor Association (FLA), Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), Made in Green by Oeko-Tex, SA8000, and WRAP standards are evaluated in the early findings of this study.
