SGMA gearing up for complete accreditation
In preparation for association membership accreditation by internationally recognized independent monitoring groups, the Saipan Garment Manufacturers Association will conduct its last round of intensive training before the full implementation of its Code of Conduct.
A Code of Conduct Training Conference will be held from March 5-7, 2001, where all 31 SGMA member companies will receive instruction from both local and federal officials and private companies.
Presenters will include officials from Region IX, US Department of Labor-OSHA Division, US Department of Labor-Wage & Hour Compliance Division, the CNMI Department of Public Safety’s Fire Division, the Division of Environmental Quality, 3M Corporation and Safety 1st Systems (Saipan), Inc.
Topics at the conference will include written health and safety programs, hazardous material handling and communication, water standards, record keeping refresher, wage & hour compliance, fire safety, the responsibilities of a safety manager, a simulated OSHA inspection tour at selected factories and comments on the OSHA/SGMA Excellence 2000 Partnership.
OSHA officials are expected to arrive on Saipan to begin consultation with the 21 of 31 SGMA members who have voluntarily pledged to work toward the Excellence 2000 program certification.
“SGMA’s goal and that of our factories is nothing short of making our workplaces meet the highest standards of anywhere in the world from a labor standards perspective,” said Excellence 2000 Committee Chairperson Annie Castro Cepeda.
SGMA Chairman Gonzalo Santos added, ” This is a good thing not only for our workers, but meeting the high standards we’ve set for our factories will also give them a necessary competitive edge in a tough international marketplace.”
After the March conference, SGMA will conduct follow-up SGMA Code of Conduct monitoring inspections. Internationally recognized for their work to improve business excellence, PricewaterhouseCoopers will conduct the inspections as follow-ups to their first round of full SGMA Code of Conduct compliance monitoring inspections.
Executive Director Richard A. Pierce stated, “Every association member will be subject to PwC’s monitoring which will preclude the ultimate test of Code and lawful compliance. Eventual full accreditation will be awarded to those firms when facility, dormitories and personnel monitoring is conducted by the Fair Labor Association, the Worldwide Responsible Apparel Products group, or the SA 8000.”
