Our position on child labour

The position of the adidas Group with regard to child labour is set out in the Group’s Workplace Standards which state, 'Business partners must not employ children who are less than 15 years old, or less than the age for completing compulsory education in the country of manufacture where such age is higher than 15.'

The decision about what is the appropriate minimum age for workers has been as difficult for us as it has been for the whole industry, and one that we considered very carefully. Before reaching our final conclusions, we visited our suppliers’ factories to investigate the causes of child labour, ran a number of initiatives seeking to combine active employment with access to education for juvenile workers, and consulted with both local stakeholders and international organisations, such as the UN and International Labour Organization (ILO). Ultimately, we apply those standards found in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the ILO Conventions, since they reflect, most importantly, the best interests of the young people concerned.

Applying international standards

ILO Convention No 138 allows for work to be done from the age of 15 onwards, or from 14 years of age where the economy and educational facilities are insufficiently developed, and only under certain conditions. The SEA team is tasked to ensure that suppliers who employ people under age 18 fulfil these conditions. While we do not intend to promote juvenile employment, we believe that respecting international standards is both legally consistent and more practical than completely banning the employment of any worker under age 18. This is particularly true for those countries undergoing rapid development, where young people contribute to the economic support of their families.

In most countries the labour law will not allow people under 16 to work, and between the ages of 16 and 18 there are strict limitations on the kinds of jobs that can be done, and the total number of hours allowed to be worked. We require our suppliers to comply with these laws and to pay people below the age of 18 at the same rates as paid to people over 18. We do not allow our suppliers to have young people working for long hours in their factories, or on night shifts, or near heavy machinery.

Monitoring age

An important monitoring task is to check evidence of the workers' ages. Factories are required to keep copies of birth certificates, identity cards or other legal proof of age for every one of their employees. In those countries where our factories are employing workers between ages 15-17, we monitor to check that all aspects of juvenile employment conditions are met.

Continuing education and training

Moreover, beyond the basic monitoring carried out by the SEA team, the project partners we have engaged help us manage special initiatives aimed at promoting such matters as worker training, reproductive health and skills development. They are fully aware of the challenges associated with managing juvenile workers. Many of their own programmes target youth, young migrant workers in particular.

In a small number of countries, formal education finishes at age 14 and people are legally allowed to work before 15. However, we work hard to ensure that children below 15 do not work. In Pakistan and India, our involvement has been instrumental in programmes led by the ILO and the NGO Save the Children, intended to improve local schools and protect family incomes when children stop working.

As part of the programme led by Save the Children, the local NGO Sudhaar assessed the education needs of children in Sialkot, Pakistan, and then devised and delivered education and training interventions. The programme has been partly funded by the adidas Group. As of 1 September 2007, 19,266 pupils in more than 125 governmental schools directly benefit from improved school facilities and access to better education.

Football stitching centres

In 1997, the ILO, UNICEF and the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry signed a partner agreement to eliminate child labour in Pakistan’s football manufacturing industry. As part of its commitment to that agreement, the ILO established an independent workplace monitoring system to check for under-age workers in registered stitching centres. The adidas Group has two football suppliers with registered stitching centres in Sialkot that are subject to such independent monitoring.

During the peak production period for the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ we commissioned an independent review to develop a more rigorous monitoring system for the stitching centres. This more effective monitoring system prevents the employment of under-age workers and minimises the risk of contracting with home-based stitching operations. This multi-tiered monitoring system combines our own internal monitoring activities with cross-auditing by our local suppliers. In early 2007, to sustain and strengthen the system, we hired a full-time field monitor in Sialkot and also provided additional training to our suppliers’ monitoring staff.

  • We strictly adhere to international standards and we do not allow our suppliers to have young people working for long hours in their factories, or on night shifts, or near heavy machinery.