RJC presents ethics system for jewelry industry

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RJC presents ethics system for jewelry industry

By Teresa Novellino

March 31, 2009

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Basel, Switzerland--Leaders of the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC), a London-based organization that aims to establish an accreditation system for ethical business practices for jewelers and watchmakers worldwide, outlined its system during a press conference held at BaselWorld.

The conference, held during BaselWorld's Press Day on Wednesday, the day before the show opened, was led by Pamela Caillens of Cartier, who chairs the RJC Membership Committee, and John Hall of Rio Tinto, vice chair of the RJC. Both Cartier and Rio Tinto are founding members of the RJC, which has thus far attracted 90 members with its mission to create a standardized system to ensure that jewelry industry members are behaving ethically and responsibly everywhere from the mines to the retail counter. U.S. retail members include Day's Jewelers, Ben Bridge Jewelers, Signet (which operates Kay Jewelers in the United States), Tiffany and Co. and Zale, among others, independents and chains alike.

RJC accreditation is designed to serve as a "seal of good practice" in the eyes of consumers, who have been increasingly concerned in recent years about the origins of the products they buy, including the environmental records and labor practices of the companies selling those products.

"We're looking for a system that enhances the industry and protects the product," said Caillens, who added that Cartier has encouraged its competitors to join the RJC as well. "If the jewelry and watch industry has a bad reputation that can't be good for our company."

Hall said one example of the type of practice that will be part of the accreditation requirements is the assurance that man-made diamonds are always disclosed as being "laboratory-created" or "laboratory-grown."

"The clear responsibility of members is not to misrepresent what we are selling," he said.

While there are various existing ethical standards systems that companies have adopted on their own, there is no single, uniform system that is recognized throughout the jewelry industry. The RJC's goal is to create one, through which third-party auditors can accredit jewelry and watch companies, including retailers, and thus allow companies to do away with their in-house systems.

"Do you need to have 10 stickers in your store?" Caillens asked. "So our plan is to come up with a way to make this across the industry."

The RJC, which completed its core system documents in December, is currently working on the nuts and bolts of the accreditation system that will be used by auditors who will visit jewelry businesses--including mining companies, manufacturers and retailers--to assess whether or not they fit the criteria for RJC certification. The next step is to train the auditors and accredit them.

"As soon as auditors are accredited, it becomes possible for companies to be certified," Caillens said.

While the RJC currently has members, none are certified yet, since the system is still in the works.

Membership fees are based upon the size of the company: It costs about $60 per year for a retail jeweler who does $1 million in business to become a member of the RJC. To become certified, the price is higher, as the cost of an audit ranges from 1200 to 1500 euros (about $1,600 to $2,000 in U.S. dollars under current exchange rates). Once certified, a company will not be audited again for three years.

If problems are found during the course of the audit, companies are given a corrective action plan through which they can make changes and gain certification.

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