SA8000 Standard 2014 Revision Content

To ensure the continued relevance and adaptability of SA8000 certification applications, the SA8000 standard is revised every five years. This process is carried out in accordance with the ISEAL Code of Good Practice for the Development of Social and Environmental Standards. During the public consultation period, the International Accountability International (SAI) invited all interested parties to give comments or suggestions for revisions within a 60-day period starting from December 17, 2013 and ending on February 15, 2014. SAI hopes that as many stakeholders as possible can express their opinions. The comments received will help to further the revision of the SA8000 standard. From May 1 to July 15, 2013, a consultation process with subject matter experts was carried out as part of the SA8000: 2014 Revision. The information collected from this consultation was analyzed and used by the Standards Committee to guide the revision of the standard.

Although the 2014 version of the standard has been officially released, SA8000:2008 is still the only standard applicable for certification. From January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015, this year will be a transition period for the SA8000 standard. Organizations can choose to use SA8000:2008 version or SA8000:2014 version for certification. From January 1, 2016, the only acceptable social responsibility certification standard will be SA8000:2014 version. This means that starting from 2016, all old versions (2008 version) of the standard must complete the conversion work of the new version (2014 version), otherwise the certificate will face the risk of expiration. Currently, only the English version of the standard is published on the SAI website, and the Chinese version and other languages ​​are still in the process of preparation and translation. Some auxiliary documents and resources are also under intensive development and will be officially released before the end of 2014.

What items are included in the SA8000 social responsibility writing procedure system document?
1. Purpose Write down the purpose of the program and what it is intended to control.
2. Scope: Write down the application scope of the program and when and where it can be used.
3. Define and explain some of the terms or abbreviations mentioned in this program.
4. Responsibilities or References Reference documents indicate the reference documents related to the activities described in the procedure; and identify the performers of the related activities.
5. Procedures Describe each step of the procedure in detail, showing as much as possible: What? When? Where? How? and Why?
6. The records shall describe in detail the various social responsibility system records within the program and explain the filing department, method or retention period of each record.