|
We are deeply saddened by the loss of life and injuries sustained during the recent building collapse in Bangladesh. Our thoughts remain with the families of the victims and everyone affected by this tragedy. Our hope is that justice is served for those who lost their lives or were injured in the tragedy. VF did not have a business relationship with any of the factories in the collapsed building. Similar to most apparel companies, however, VF does have contract manufacturing in Bangladesh, and we intend to maintain operations in the country. We will do so while working diligently to ensure that the factories producing our products provide a safe working environment for their employees. Our workplace safety efforts in Bangladesh include a commitment to ensuring that facilities we use are well constructed and that our partners are prepared to respond effectively in the event of an emergency. To do this, we have increased the frequency of unannounced inspections and reaffirmed our commitment to the compliance policies outlined in our Terms of Engagement, which details our expectations in the operation of factories. In addition, we are educating both factory and floor managers and workers on safety protocols and the proper response to emergencies. VF is committed to developing short- and long-term programs, in partnership with factory management, governments, local and international NGOs, labor rights advocates and the industry, to ensure that effective safety standards and procedures are in place for apparel workers in Bangladesh. For additional details on our current Factory Compliance Guidelines and our efforts to provide safe work environments, please download a copy of the latest VF Compliance Report. |
At VF, integrity never goes out of fashion.
As one of the world's leading apparel suppliers, we embrace the opportunity and responsibility that comes with our leadership role. Our success to date is a direct result of the values we embrace as a company and as people. To us, values such as honesty, integrity, consideration, and respect are more than words; they are embedded in everything we do and are the foundation of our social and environmental efforts.
These same values helped us craft our approach to environmental sustainability, which reflects our commitment to operating our business in a manner that ensures future generations can live with cleaner water and air, healthier forests and oceans, and a stable climate. By actively encouraging our associates to lead us in an environmentally and socially responsible direction, we will innovate to deliver sustainable products to people around the world, and will be a good corporate citizen. In this way, we will create value for our business and the communities in which we operate, while continuously reducing our environmental footprint.
We base our approach to sustainability on three pillars: our social, environmental and economic impacts. These three are inextricably linked, with the vibrancy of each reliant on the health of the others. As we advance our sustainability journey, we will continue to embed social and environmental considerations into all our decision making in order to create shared value where we live, work and play.
Looking Forward
Our sustainability strategy focuses on aligning our social and environmental impacts. We know our accountability starts with our own operations; therefore we are setting clear goals to reduce our impact and continually challenge ourselves to do better. We also acknowledge that our reach goes further than our own operations. Our history of owning and operating highly-efficient manufacturing facilities provides us with multiple opportunities to leverage our knowledge and disciplines with our contracted manufacturing partners around the world to raise their levels of environmental awareness and responsiveness. By encouraging others to join us, we can amplify the positive effects.
As a global corporation, we are still in the early stages of our sustainability journey. We recognize that sustainability is fundamental to our success as a corporation and to our role as a global citizen. We are ready and committed to embrace the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead, as we build value for our business and help create a better world for future generations.
