Legal compliance as a top priority
In accordance with the law
Germany has one of the strictest environmental legislation worldwide. We all benefit from it: clean water, clean air and fertile soils are just as important to us as safe and healthy products. Images of dense smog in Beijing, tar sands mining in Canada or burning rainforests illustrate the fact that is not just a matter of course the world over.
Environmental protection democratically legitimized in the EU
German and EU environmental laws are democratically legitimized and therefore enjoy widespread acceptance by the population and by business enterprises. Violating these regulations not only involves a large financial risk but also a risk for the company's reputation.
Quite often in some of our production countries, there is either no such far-reaching environmental legislation, or - such as in China - the fulfillment of the strict rules is not sufficiently encouraged and controlled.
| GRI: | EN29 |
| GRI: | PR9 |
| GRI: | SO8 |
| GRI: | DMA Compliance |
And even though we would not be held liable, VAUDE would be exposed to a high reputational risk if our suppliers violated national regulations in the countries of production. One example of this is the Greenpeace Detox Campaign.
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»We cannot afford to violate applicable regulations. Not only because of our reputation, but even more so, because of our own convictions.« Hilke Patzwall, VAUDE CSR Manager
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Annual EMAS verification and "ISO 14001" certification
For us at VAUDE, it is a matter of course that we comply with environmental laws and regulations. At our Tettnang-Obereisenbach headquarters, this is reviewed annually in the EMAS and "ISO 14001" certification process. These audits ensure our legal compliance.
We have been working with an index of legal provisions in the area of environmental management for years, in which environmental regulations are listed. This index is audited annually in the EMAS verification process. A comprehensive index, which includes the areas of environmental management, companies, products and workplace safety, is currently being drafted.
Monitoring with bluesign® in the supply chain
In the supply chain, the verification of compliance with all environmental legislation is almost impossible. Nevertheless, we take this issue very seriously. In the supply chain, we rely on the information provided by our suppliers and monitoring through bluesign®.
Many of our suppliers are bluesign® system partners. bluesign® checks compliance with all applicable environmental legislation in the respective country of production. We are unaware of any cases in which our suppliers or their subcontractors have violated environmental laws that led to fines or non-monetary sanctions.
Wide range of products, many regulations
We manufacture a wide range of products for the consumer. For each product group there are many regulations and standards to be followed. There are additional legal requirements which we must comply with for economic reasons that apply to our headquarters in Tettnang-Obereisenbach. Ignoring these rules poses a great financial risk in itself and would have significant consequences for the company's reputation.
Legal security for our employees as well
We see ourselves as a socially active company; this is embedded in our values and principles. This means that we not only adhere to legal requirements for our product range and environmental standards, but also meet labor standards, laws and regulations. We want to give our employees the assurance that VAUDE complies with all provisions of labor law – for example, we do not tolerate discrimination in the workplace.
Cooperation with external experts
VAUDE has no legal department that handles the verification of legal compliance. Nevertheless, to establish legal certainty we use various external sources and depend upon the advice of outside experts in different areas and fields. These include, among others:
- Memberships in associations such as GermanFashion, BSI, DTB, EOG, etc.
- Partnerships such as bluesign® system partner
- Beuth Standard Subscription
- Engineering Office ARCUM
- Engineering Office Anwander for occupational safety and fire protection
From these sources we obtain current information on legislative changes or amendments to other rules. This also includes information about legal requirements in our production countries. In labor law issues, we work with a law firm that specializes in employment law.
