SA 8000, or Social Accountability 8000, was developed to promote socially responsible business in all sectors around the globe. Rather than being a sweatshop code for customers to enforce upon their suppliers, SA 8000 was developed to help socially responsible companies to measure and differentiate themselves from other companies operating with less than acceptable labor conditions. It sets out expectations regarding health and safety, child labor, forced labor, freedom of association, discrimination, disciplinary practices, working hours and compensation together with the management systems to deliver them. SA 8000 covers all the major labor rights issues contained in International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. It also acknowledges the importance of compliance with locally applicable laws.
