Responsible Jewellery Council
The Responsible Jewellery Council (‘RJC’) was established in 2005 to promote responsible ethical, human rights, social and environmental practices throughout the gold and diamond supply chains. It was built on the belief that these issues can be best addressed as a collaborative effort.
Richemont plays an active role in the RJC. Cartier was one of the 13 founding members and today RJC has grown to include over 375 members, including six other Richemont Maisons: Van Cleef & Arpels, Piaget, Baume & Mercier, Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Montblanc.
Code of Practices
The RJC has developed a Code of Practices, based on established international principles, which sets out requirements against which members must be certified. The scope of the Code of Practices captures:
- Business Ethics practices;
- Human Rights and Social Performance;
- Environmental Performance;
- Management Systems.
The RJC Code of Practices System
The Council has developed the RJC Code of Practices System, a certification system applicable to all members’ businesses that contribute to the gold and diamond jewellery supply chain. Certification will help to strengthen the reputation of members as well as the reputations of members’ suppliers, customers and business partners. Under the RJC System, all commercial members of the RJC must be audited by accredited, third party auditors to verify compliance with the Code of Practices. Further information can be obtained at: http://www.responsiblejewellery.com/certification/
In 2010, Cartier was the first retailer to receive certification under the RJC System. The certifications of Van Cleef & Arpels, Piaget, Baume & Mercier, Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Montblanc were confirmed during the year under review. As a percentage of Group sales, the proportion of Richemont’s businesses which have been audited regarding these non-financial criteria has therefore increased from zero in 2009/10, to less than 50 % in 2010/11, to some 75 % in 2011/12. Further details are provided here.
The RJC’s year
During the year under review, in addition to certifying well over 100 members’ compliance with its Code of Practices, the RJC’s achievements included:
- Becoming an Associate Member of the lSEAL Alliance. ISEAL Members are standards organisations that commit to transparency, co-operation and good governance;
- Developing programmes to improve labour standards and working conditions in India’s jewellery supply chain with Social Accountability International;
- Launching collaborative efforts with the Alliance for Responsible Mining (‘ARM’) and the Diamond Development International Initiative (‘DDII’). These efforts include the improvement of social, environmental and labour practices in artisanal and small-scale mining, and the artisanal diamond mining sector, respectively;
- Increasing its number of Trade Associations, including the Dutch Federatie Goud en Zilver and the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, Belgium;
- Launching its Chain-of-Custody standard for precious metals; and
- Increasing its membership from some 300 to more than 375 businesses.
These various achievements underscore the RJC’s growing reputation within the jewellery industry.