Employers shall adopt and adhere to rules and conditions of employment that respect workers and, at a minimum, safeguard their rights under national and international labor and social security laws and regulations.
No person shall be subject to any discrimination in employment, including hiring, compensation, benefits, advancement, discipline, termination or retirement, on the basis of gender, race, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, nationality, political opinion, social group or ethnic origin. The pregnancy of an employee shall not be used as a basis for disciplinary treatment or termination of employment. Employers shall use their best efforts to reinstate workers who have taken maternity leave to the same or similar position at the same rate of pay and benefits. No employee or prospective employees shall be subjected to involuntary use of contraceptives or pregnancy testing.
Every employee shall be treated with respect and dignity. No employee shall be subject to any physical, sexual, psychological or verbal harassment or abuse. Employers will not use or tolerate any form of corporal punishment.
There shall be no use of forced labor, including prison labor, indentured labor, bonded labor or other forms of forced labor.
No person shall be employed under the age of 15 (or 14, where, consistent with International Labor Organization practices for developing countries, the law of the country of manufacture allows such exception.) Where the age for completing compulsory education is higher than the standard for the minimum age of employment stated above, the higher age for completing compulsory education shall apply.
Employers shall recognize and respect the right of employees to freedom of association and collective bargaining. No employee shall be subject to harassment, intimidation or retaliation as a result of his or her efforts to freely associate or bargain collectively.
Employers shall provide a safe and healthy workplace setting to prevent accidents and injury to health arising out of, linked with, or occurring in the course of work or as a result of the operation of employers’ facilities. If residential facilities are provided to workers, they must be safe and healthy facilities. Employers shall adopt responsible measures to mitigate negative impacts that the workplace has on the environment.
Employers shall not require workers to work more than the regular and overtime hours allowed by the law of the country where the workers are employed. The regular work week shall not exceed 48 hours. Employers shall allow workers at least 24 consecutive hours of rest in every seven-day period. All overtime work shall be consensual. Employers shall not request overtime on a regular basis and shall compensate all overtime work at a premium rate. Other than in exceptional circumstances, the sum of regular and overtime hours in a week shall not exceed 60 hours.
Every worker has a right to compensation for a regular work week that is sufficient to meet the worker’s basic needs and provide some discretionary income. Employers shall pay at least the minimum wage or the appropriate prevailing wage, whichever is higher, comply with all legal requirements on wages, and provide any fringe benefits required by law or contract. Where compensation does not meet workers’ basic needs and provide some discretionary income, each employer shall work with the FLA to take appropriate actions that seek to progressively realize a level of compensation that does.
In addition to their compensation for regular hours of work, employees shall be compensated for overtime hours at such a premium rate as is legally required in that country, but not less than at a rate equal to their regular hourly compensation rate.
