Company profile: Wolford AG
Headquarters: Bregenz
Country: Austria
Founded in: 1952/1958
Total points of sale in Europe: n.a.
Owned by: The shareholder structure of Wolford Aktiengesellschaft at the end of the 2006/07 fiscal year was as follows: The WMP family trust held more than one quarter of the shares, the Sesam private trust owned more than 15 percent, and Wolford Aktiengesellschaft itself held 2 percent as treasury stock. The rest of the stock represented free float.
Name of CEO: Holger Dahmen
Product description: Underwear, collection for ladies, socks for men
Countries of production: n.a.
General remark: n.a.
Wolford AG
unni(at)wolford.com
Comment from CCC and proposals for action
Wolford is an Austrian company listed at the stock market producing mainly underwear. They refused to fill in the questionaire. Although we contacted them several times and insisted to send us documents, they didn’t react. The CCC-Austria demands to introduce and implement the CCC Code of Conduct, more transparency and will to cooperation from Wolford.
Take action: Support the demands for more transparency and independent monitoring of the supply chain. See sample letter: http://www.cleanclothes.at/start.asp?ID=11345&b=1021
Due to the lack of response by Wolford AG to the CCC questionnaire, the following evaluation of the company’s corporate accountability policy is entirely based on a desk study conducted by the CCC in 2007. In the section “Recent developments” you can find additional information gathered after 2007.
Transparency
Wolford AG has not responded to the CCC-questionnaire at all. Some information is disclosed about turnover and profits. The amount of salaries of the top management is not known. The information given about producer countries and the structure of the supply chain is not comprehensive. There is no sustainability report available. Wolford AG provides neither the results of factory audits nor information about verification activities. The company does not disclose general targets for future monitoring activities.
Formal commitment to labour standards
Wolford AG doesn't commit in a public document to respect the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the national law. The company has not adopted a code of conduct. The company is neither committed to wages in accordance with living wage principles nor with minimum wage legislation. There are no restrictions on the number of working hours per week. No mention is made of a safe and hygienic environment for the workers who produce the company’s garments. The company does not explicitly require that all workers receive a regular employment contract. *
Code implementation and purchasing practices
Wolford AG did not indicate the steps it is taking to effectively implement minimum labour standards in its supply chain. There is no evidence that training on labour rights issues is promoted by Wolford AG. According to the information given Wolford AG has no intention to implement the payment of living wages to workers. Wolford AG has not shown that it is aware of the fact that part of its production sites are located in countries or zones where freedom of association is not guaranteed by law. There are no provisions to give buyers positive incentives to reward better working conditions. There are no measures that show how to improve planning and prevent excessive overtime.
Monitoring and Verification
The company is not a member of any business initiative. There is nothing known to CCC about monitoring results. The company is not involved in independent verification by a multi-stakeholder approach.
Violations of labour rights and public conflicts
There are no public urgent appeals from CCC calling on Wolford AG to take responsibility for workers’ rights violations in its supply chain.
Recent developments
n.a.