This Code of Conduct is based on Advania’s values and is designed to clarify our attitude to and work on basic social, ethical and environmental standards. The Code is based on the principles that are described in the UN Global Compact, which is itself based on the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the UN Convention against Corruption.
The Code of Conduct is available in two versions: this external version that describes our expectations of our business partners that contribute products and services to our business, and an internal version that describes our employees’ rights and obligations (see ‘Code of Conduct for Advania Employees’).
Our business partners, who contribute with products and services in our deliveries to customers, are also expected to comply with the applicable Code of Conduct from the Responsible Business Alliance which can be found at: http://www.responsiblebusiness.org/code-of-conduct/.
Advania is one of the leading and most comprehensive system integrators in the North European region. With a stated aim to be the most flexible, value-adding supplier, we help our customers in the areas of IT outsourcing, business systems, process automation, contact centres, IT infrastructure, integration solutions and data centres.
It is essential that all Advania’s suppliers comply with laws and local regulations in all the countries in which they operate.
Advania respects and supports the fundamental human rights described in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We also expect our suppliers to respect and promote human rights and to work systematically to identify risks of violations, both internally and in the supply chain, to counteract and prevent violations, and to remedy any violations if they occur.
Advania’s suppliers must respect and acknowledge all employees’ right to freely organise themselves and to negotiate collectively on working conditions and wages and salaries.
There should be no discrimination based on the following grounds: gender, gender identity or expression, religion or other beliefs, disability, sexual orientation or age. Advania neither accept discrimination based on marital status, pregnancy, nationality, political opinions or union involvement.
Similarly, there must be no form of harassment, including sexual harassment, physical or mental punishment, or any other harsh or inhumane treatment.
Suppliers must have a written policy describing their zero tolerance of discrimination and harassment. This policy must also contain information about the disciplinary action the company may take in case of discrimination or harassment.
All forms of forced labour, where an employee is not free to terminate their employment after a reasonable period of notice, are prohibited. This includes, for example, slave labour and prison labour, and covers employed and contracted staff on short and long fixed-term contracts.
Child labour is not permitted under any circumstances. No employee may be younger than 15 years of age (or 14 years of age if national legislation permits it), or younger than the minimum age of employment if this is above 15 years of age.
Employed young people aged 15 to 18 years of age must be protected from everything that might impair their health, safety, well-being and development. They must not work at night and the work must not affect their schooling.
If a supplier detects child workers somewhere in the supply chain, the measures implemented must focus on the best interests of the child, and the remediation should be done in conjunction with the child’s family and local organisations such as schools or non-profit organisations.
Suppliers should act to promote the payment of reasonable living wage to employees, but the absolute requirement is the statutory minimum level at national or local level. Overtime pay must be paid and clearly itemised on pay slips.
Weekly working hours must not exceed the statutory limit, or 60 hours if no statutory limit exists. All employees must have at least one day off a week, and the relevant national legislation concerning compensation for annual leave, public holidays, sick pay and parental leave must be complied with.
All employees of the supplier must be guaranteed a safe, healthy workplace and the risks of ill health must be prevented. If ill health occurs, the effects must be minimised. Provision of the personal protective equipment required for any dangerous tasks is essential and just one example of preventive measures.
Everyone must have access to information and sufficient knowledge of any health risks the work involves and how these should be managed, for example fire safety, risk of accidents and how first aid is applied. Emergency exits must be clearly marked and easily accessible. Evacuation drills must be carried out regularly.
Advania’s suppliers must comply with local and national environmental legislation in all the countries in which they operate. Environmental precautions should always be taken based on the precautionary principle, as described in the Rio Declaration from the UN.
Products must be subject to a life cycle perspective from as early as product development, with a commitment to continuous improvement in environmental performance and reduced resource consumption. All suppliers must record their impact, set targets and monitor their environmental work to demonstrate that they work systematically on environmental issues and stipulate environmental requirements for their suppliers. Suppliers should also strive to certify their environmental work under an international standard such as ISO14001. The products delivered to Advania should be certified according to an independent environmental or sustainability label. Examples of labels are TCO Certified or EPEAT Gold for IT products, the Nordic Swan Ecolabel or the EU Ecolabel for other types of products such as cleaning chemicals, food and office products.
Data centers that produce services for Advania and its customers must strive to be powered by electricity from renewable sources.
Other relevant environmental requirements may be set when choosing a supplier and range.
Advania’s suppliers and business partners are expected to comply with all applicable legislation regarding anti-corruption, sanctions and trade-controls, antitrust and money-laundering.
Any form of corruption, including extortion, bribery, or other ways of abusing your position to obtain undue advantage for your own profit or for the profit of another party, is prohibited. Gifts and other benefits to business connections must comply with current legislation and be provided in accordance with good business ethics.
Furthermore, it is not permitted to receive any form of improper payment from third parties that may in some way influence business decisions or impede someone from acting objectively.
This Code is communicated externally to our suppliers and is used as a basis for evaluating their work on social, ethical and environmental issues. Advania urges all our suppliers to work actively with the principles of the UN Global Compact. Advania’s most important suppliers, our partners, must also sign our Code of Conduct, or otherwise demonstrate their consent, in order to show that they support it. The Code of Conduct is available to customers and other stakeholders and can be found on www.advania.com.
Stockholm, 05/05/2022
Mikael Noaksson, CEO Advania AB
