NEW YORK, June 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Center for Corporate
Accountability (ICCA) today released initial audit results of additional
manufacturing facilities of major Mattel, Inc. suppliers in China. The ICCA
reports were commissioned by Mattel (NYSE: MAT) as part of Mattel's
commitment to upholding its Global Manufacturing Principles (GMP) code of
conduct. Audits are intended to provide an unbiased, third-party analysis
of working conditions in both Mattel's owned and operated and contracted
manufacturing facilities.
Voluntary audit reports of Mattel-owned manufacturing facilities have
been published since 1999, and this marks the second round of reports about
Mattel's major supplier facilities. The current audit covers seven
manufacturing facilities that are among the major suppliers of Mattel in
China. Of these, one has previously been audited by ICCA (results issued in
January 2004). Audits of three facilities were conducted in July 2005, with
follow-up visits in December 2005. The remaining four facilities were
audited in December 2005.
"With the conclusion of this audit, ICCA has determined that Mattel's
GMP continues to play an important role in leading contractor manufacturing
facilities to achieve or even surpass compliance standards in safety,
maintenance, employee communications, payroll and working conditions, which
in turn benefits the entire industry," said Dr. S. Prakash Sethi, chairman
of ICCA and University Distinguished Professor, Zicklin School of Business,
Baruch College. "We were especially pleased to see significant progress
between July and December at the three facilities where we have already
conducted follow-up visits."
Sethi noted, "Mattel is the first and still the only global consumer
products company to apply a required standards system to both its own
manufacturing facilities and those of its major suppliers, and to
independently monitor and publicly disclose the results. We encourage other
companies to adopt such standards for their manufacturing facilities
worldwide."
Following is a summary of the findings of the ICCA report released today:
Achievements:
* Manufacturing facilities visited by ICCA show compliance in a number of
areas, and the audits indicate that Mattel has committed considerable
resources to advise and assist its suppliers in order to improve their
level of compliance with Mattel's GMP.
* The minimum employee age of 16 is strictly enforced; investigators did
not find any employees under the age of 16. In most facilities, the
average age was over 20.
* All facilities demonstrated a lack of discrimination or promotion based
on sex, race or ethnic origin.
* With one or two exceptions, all plants were found to be in compliance
for accurate personnel record-keeping and payment of legally mandated
minimum wages for regular and normal overtime working hours.
* Employee access to and communication with management was generally
good, with various opportunities for communication, including line
supervisors, HR staff, suggestion boxes and meetings with management.
* Almost all of the facilities provided voluntary use of safe and clean
dormitories and most had good food service available to employees.
Improvement Challenges:
* Some plants showed inadequacies pertaining to environmental issues,
including disposal of wastewater and poor ventilation. Improvements are
also needed with regard to facility maintenance, employee safety
training and proper use of personal protective equipment.
* Improvements needed around application with regard to benefits such as
maternity leave and paid annual leave, elimination of fees for ID
badges, uniforms and required pre-hire medical examinations.
* Several plants did not have adequate medical facilities on-site.
* Some plants also required permits for restroom and water breaks and
issued only a limited number of permits during any given shift.
* Most facilities exceeded the maximum overtime hours limits for peak
production periods (called consolidated work hours), authorized by the
local labor bureaus and Mattel's revised GMP and some facilities didn't
have the required consolidated work hour permits.
"I'm very proud of Mattel's role in leading this effort, which has
helped us to identify important areas of performance that require
improvement," said Tom Debrowski, executive vice president of worldwide
operations for Mattel. "This is precisely why we've continued to commission
these audits, so we can work with our vendors to ensure they make the
appropriate changes to achieve compliance with our GMP standards."
Plant 18 presented an unusual situation for Mattel in that this is the
first time that an audit has not been completed due to insufficient
cooperation on the part of plant management. Mattel has scheduled a full
audit of Plant 18 slated for this summer and expects its management to
cooperate fully with ICCA to address issues and help the facility comply
with Mattel's GMP. If Plant 18 management does not comply with the audit
procedures, Mattel says it will consider termination of this supplier
contract.
"Mattel's goal first and foremost is to lead suppliers into compliance
with our standards, because that benefits employees, the community and our
business," Debrowski said. "If we are unable to drive the necessary change
to meet Mattel's standards, then under our Zero Tolerance rule we will
terminate contracts."
Despite the challenges and disappointment in this round of the auditing
process, both ICCA and Mattel are pleased with the improved level
compliance achieved by suppliers, and recognize the challenges that lie
ahead in leading suppliers into compliance with GMP. To achieve this goal,
Mattel will work closely with suppliers, and in consultation with ICCA, to
design and implement an action plan to correct those deficiencies that may
not have already been rectified since the audits were conducted.
The full text of the ICCA report can be viewed on ICCA's Web site at
http://www.ICCA-corporateaccountability.org and on the Mattel corporate Web
site located at
http://www.mattel.com/about_us/Corp_Responsibility/default.asp. For more
information about how Mattel is addressing the challenges outlined in this
round of audits, please see Mattel's response located at the company's
corporate website.
Mattel's Global Manufacturing Principles (GMP), launched in November
1997, form the cornerstone of the company's ongoing commitment to
responsible manufacturing practices around the world. Adherence to GMP
seeks to ensure that wages, working and living conditions and employee
access to management are just and fair, as well as to assure protection of
the environment. As part of Mattel's GMP, the company's primary suppliers
are also subject to compliance with the standards set in the GMP. Mattel
contracted with ICCA to perform regular audits of its owned manufacturing
facilities and those of its major suppliers. ICCA's responsibility is to
evaluate and publish findings on these manufacturing facilities' compliance
with GMP.
ICCA's audit protocols are designed to verify supplier compliance with
Mattel's GMP standards in a manner that is comprehensive, objectively
measured, interpreted in a meaningful manner and independent of any other
consideration except the compliance standards specified in the GMP.
About Mattel
Mattel, Inc., (NYSE: MAT) (http://www.mattel.com) is the worldwide leader in
the design, manufacture and marketing of toys and family products,
including Barbie(R), the most popular fashion doll ever introduced. The
Mattel family is comprised of such best-selling brands as Hot Wheels(R),
Matchbox(R), American Girl(R) and Tyco(R) R/C, as well as Fisher-Price(R)
brands (http://www.fisher-price.com), including Little People(R), Rescue
Heroes(R), Power Wheels(R) and a wide array of entertainment-inspired toy
lines. With worldwide headquarters in El Segundo, Calif., Mattel employs
more than 25,000 people in 42 countries and sells products in more than 150
nations throughout the world. The Mattel vision is to be the world's
premier toy brands -- today and tomorrow.
About ICCA
Directed by Dr. S. Prakash Sethi, the International Center for
Corporate Accountability (ICCA) is a not-for-profit, independently
incorporated organization comprised of a council of experts in labor issues
worldwide. ICCA encourages and assists multinational corporations in
creating, implementing and arranging independent monitoring of codes of
conduct. As an academically-affiliated organization, associated with the
Zicklin School of Business of Baruch College - The City University of New
York, ICCA also undertakes independent field research on aspects of
corporate governance and accountability that normally fall outside the
purview of corporate boards of directors, and engages in dialogue with a
wide range of stakeholders.
SOURCE The International Center for Corporate Accountability
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Related links:
http://www.ICCA-corporateaccountability.org
http://www.mattel.com
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/540363.html /
CONTACT:
Dr. S. Prakash Sethi of International Center
for Corporate Accountability, +1-646-312-2230; or Lisa Marie
Bongiovanni of Mattel, Inc., +1-310-252-3524
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