Ethical Fashion

Rapanui is an Eco-Fashion company from the Isle of Wight, that makes Organic, Ethical clothing using Renewable Energy with award-winning traceability. Rapanui is about making eco-fashion cool.

Rapanui Eco Latest

Ethical Fashion

Fairtrade

Environental Policy Statement

The Trouble with cotton

Fair Wear Foundation

You might have noticed a Fair Wear Foundation Logo around. So what does it mean? It sounds a bit like Fairtrade, but in reality, Fair Wear Foundation work to solve a different problem.

It is well known that Fairtrade certification makes sure farmers get a fair price for their crop. Fair Wear Foundation sounds the same, but work to improve workplace conditions in the garment and textile industry, (rather than Fairtrade, which is about the farming and supply of goods). In short, Fair Wear Foundation works to improve the quality of life of people in the factories and manufacturing of clothes. It's a similar principle - based on assurance of some ethical principles, but Fair Wear Foundation is specifically designed for clothing manufacturers.

Fair Wear Foundation is governed by Independent, non-prejudiced organisations. These include labour unions, NGOs and business associations. The core operation of FWF works by verifying that its member companies implement the “FWF Code of Labour Practices” in their supply chains. Their Code of Labour Practises is a detailed list of criteria the covers all aspects of ethical and fair working conditions, but most importantly it is specifically designed for the clothing industry.

Fair Wear Foundation.
Labour standards for the
clothing & textile industry

Independent Labour Standards for Clothing & Textiles

Established in 1999 by, among others, the Clean Clothes Campaign, FWF in 2010 has over fifty member companies, some of them brands, some factories, some textile manufacturers, from all over Europe and is active in production countries like China, India, Bangladesh and Turkey.

If you see the Fair Wear Foundation logo next to a product, it guarantees that it has come from a factory audited by Fair Wear Foundation for compliance to their code.

FWF keeps track of the improvements made by the companies it works with, and the basis of the collaboration is the Code of Labour Practices. Eight labour standards, which have been created specifically for the garment industry, form the core of this code.

Members of FWF must comply with labour standards, which include:

•    Employment is freely chosen
•    There is no discrimination in employment
•    No exploitation of child labour
•    Freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining
•    Payment of a living wage
•    No excessive working hours
•    Safe and healthy working conditions
•    Legally-binding employment relationship

Fundamentally, these labour standards are derived from ILO Conventions and the UN’s Declaration on Human Rights:

"Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection ... Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work ... Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity ... Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay."
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
(Articles 23-25, United Nations, www.un.org 2009)

We think manufacturers should care for their work force with a view to creating a supply chain that is somewhere safe and fair for people to come to work. Choosing to source products made in a Fair Wear Foundation audited factory is our way of addressing this point - we think that it's the most effective way that we can ensure our customers are able to shop with peace of mind.

As we're currently a brand, not yet a manufacturer, Rapanui is not a member of FWF - but we are committed to sourcing products from manufacturers that carry this mark. This information is intended to show that Rapanui products are sourced intelligently - with labour credentials that match our values, and the values of our customers.

As a result, all of our core lines (e.g. which equated to around 90% of volume in 2012) are made in factories that subcribe to the Fair Wear Foundation code of labour practises.