SGS certificates medical devices company Rocialle to SA8000® - the pre-eminent standard in labour practices

Rocialle, a major supplier in the healthcare sector, has been certified to SA8000®, the highest international standard for labour practices, by SGS United Kingdom Ltd. Rocialle, part of the Berendsen plc group of companies and the UK market leading supplier of operating theatre procedure packs, medical instruments, devices and medical consumables, has already achieved level 2 in the NHS’s own Labour Standards Assurance Scheme (LSAS), but believes the SA8000 certification will provide a critical competitive edge for the future. “Not only does it prove that at our facilities we have the highest standards for labour practices, it helps us ensure our suppliers around the world meet the relevant criteria as well,” says Liam Keene, Quality Manager at Rocialle. “It opens up the circle of quality.” SA8000 certification addresses issues including forced and child labour, occupational health and safety, freedom of association and collective bargaining, discrimination, disciplinary practices, working hours, compensation and management systems. Rocialle selected SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company – and global leader in SA8000 certification – to undertake the audit. “We have worked with SGS for many years and have always found that they understand our business and are always very clear about what is required,” says Mr Keene. “Achieving Social Accountability certification such as SA8000 pushes us up the league table when we are tendering for work. In the past, the emphasis was on certification for quality management systems and then on environmental practices. Now auditing labour practices – both internally and at our suppliers – is becoming a requirement in more and more tender documents.” Charles Townsend, SA8000 Product Manager for SGS, says “Rocialle were exceptionally well-prepared for the audit. It was also pleasing to note that the requirements for certification to SA8000 have been integrated into the company’s management system, which is certified by us to ISO 9001:2008.” Rocialle is based in Mountain Ash in South Wales and is part of the Berendsen plc group of companies, a FTSE 250 company and a European textile service business with leading positions in most of the countries in which it operates. Berendsen has 15,000 employees across 15 countries throughout Europe. The SA8000 Standard, established by Social Accountability International and one of the world’s pre-eminent social standards, is a tool for implementing international labour standards to protect workers along each step of the supply chain. For more information on SA8000, go to www.sgs.co.uk/sa8000.

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