The Converged Assessment Framework (CAF) by SLCP

Overview

The Social and Labor Convergence Program (SLCP) is a multi-stakeholder initiative with 250+ signatories committed to improving working conditions in global supply chains. SLCP is designed to support a wide range of supply chain actors, with a primary focus on:

• Facilities/manufacturers: By using a single SLCP assessment to share data with multiple brands, facilities can reduce audit fatigue and unlock resources toward improving working conditions.
• Brands: SLCP provides credible and actionable social and labour data that can support their HRDD processes. 
• Policymakers and government institutions: SLCP’s publicly available tools and aggregated data can be used to inform policy and broader decision-making.

SLCP aims to unite and support all stakeholders by implementing a universal social assessment tool called the Converged Assessment Framework (CAF). The CAF assesses working conditions in facilities. It collects a comprehensive set of foundational social and labor data, reducing the need for multiple proprietary audits. It provides credible and actionable data on working conditions that supports human rights due diligence (HRDD). It is a sector-agnostic tool, although the main adoption is in the textile and apparel sector.

As a social assessment covering a wide range of topics, the CAF addresses many of the human rights risks companies are expected to identify as part of their HRDD processes. As such, the CAF can be a foundational tool for companies undertaking HRDD.

The assessment process consists of three stages:

1. Data collection: facilities answer questions on various social and labor compliance topics
2. Data verification: SLCP approved Verifiers verify facility answers following a robust verification methodology
3. Data sharing: facilities control how they share their assessment data with multiple end users (e.g. brands, retailers) through a unique and secure system designed to minimize audit fatigue

The CAF is available in 122 countries and regions. The CAF remains a publicly available tool accessible for any facility looking to assess its social compliance and HRDD practices. Currently, over 100 companies are publicly accepting the CAF, with the majority of manufacturers experiencing the benefits of multiple buyers accepting their SLCP assessments.

Please visit the project website or contact the Navigator team to find out how you can benefit from this support.