Nike Q & A
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M
ountain Equipment Co-op
introduced Nike ACG
products into our footwear lineup
in 2004. We’ve developed this fact
sheet for two reasons: so members
are aware that Nike ACG makes
performance outdoor footwear
Q Why is MEC carrying Nike ACG footwear?
Workplace Monitoring
A An ever-growing number of members have asked
MEC for trail running and approach shoes with a
more technical focus than our current offering.
Nike ACG footwear will provide MEC members with
performance outdoor products from a leading
manufacturer. After a thorough assessment, we have
concluded that Nike meets MEC’s supplier sourcing
requirements. Nike’s labour and environmental
practices conform to the standards we have set for
all our suppliers.
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Q Why Nike? Did MEC research other vendors?
A MEC conducted a thorough review of possible
suppliers. We concluded that Nike ACG makes some
of the best-designed and most functional footwear
for MEC’s core activities. Other leading brands of
trail running and approach shoes do not have the
wilderness-oriented focus of Nike ACG footwear.
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Q How many footwear models were introduced?
and to inform members that
A Ten models from the Nike ACG line will be available
from MEC in 2004.
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Nike produces footwear in ways
Q Will doing business with Nike compromise
MEC’s efforts to be socially and environmentally
responsible?
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confident that Nike is committed
to making ongoing progress with
their environmental practices and
workplace monitoring.
A MEC’s track record and performance in the areas
of community involvement, ethical sourcing, and
sustainable business operations reflect the depth
of our commitment to sustainability. The decision
to carry Nike ACG footwear was made only after a
thorough screening of Nike through MEC’s Sourcing
Policy and Supplier Code of Conduct. We are confident
that Nike is committed to continual improvements in
the area of corporate responsibility. We will continue
to monitor Nike’s sourcing and business practices and
treat them with the same diligence and rigour as we
do our other vendors.
Q What evidence supports the claim that Nike is
committed to greater environmental and social
responsibility?
A Here are some examples of Nike initiatives and
programs:
Photo: Rich Wheater
Printed in Canada on 100% post-consumer recycled paper
Each year, Nike monitors the working conditions of
more than 500,000 workers in more than 700 factories.
Nike has over 80 compliance workers in 4 regions. Their
compliance team communicates in over 30 languages.
Nike is a member of the Fair Labor Association and is
subject to its factory compliance program.
Nike has a track record of both internal and external
monitoring. It is committed to remediating identified
issues that don’t meet their standards and to report
publicly, where possible, on their findings.
Environmental Responsibility
that meets many members’ needs,
that align with MEC values. We’re
Fact Sheet
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Since 1993, Nike has reclaimed more than 13 million
pairs of athletic shoes–both its own and competing
brands–through the Reuse-A-Shoe program. The used
shoes are ground up to make surfaces for athletic
playing fields, as well as outsoles and midsoles for
new shoes.
In certain models, Nike has reformulated the shoe
rubber to eliminate toxins found in ordinary rubber.
These ‘green rubber’ shoes are exclusive to Nike.
Nike has instituted waste reduction programs to
reduce the amount of waste they generate and to
recycle as much as possible.
Wherever technically possible, Nike directs its
suppliers to use solvent-free adhesives in its shoes.
Nike has virtually eliminated the use of polyvinyl
chloride (PVC) in its shoes.
Community Involvement
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Nike donates three percent of pre-tax profits to charity
and community groups in the form of cash, product,
and in-kind. The industry standard is one percent.
In the US, Nike donates $10 to non-profit organizations
for every hour of time an employee spends doing
volunteer work. They also match employee donations
to non-profit organizations up to $5,000 per
employee, per year.
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Fact Sheet
Q What does Nike’s Code of Conduct encompass?
Are children working in their contract factories?
Q Are Nike’s advertising and promotional campaigns that feature elite
athletes at odds with MEC’s focus on amateur outdoor enthusiasts?
A Nike’s Code of Conduct sets a minimum age standard of 18 for footwear,
which is higher than the International Labour Organization’s standard of
age 15. Nike uses this standard to perform its sourcing audits, and any
contract factory found to be employing a person under 18 years of age
must: a) remove the child from the workplace, b) continue to pay his or
her wage, c) place the child in an accredited local school and pay all fees
to keep them there, and d) rehire them when they reach minimum age.
A MEC’s co-operative business model is fundamentally different from the
‘for profit’ model of most outdoor retailers and manufacturers. Nike’s elite
athlete ads are one example of this difference at play in the marketplace.
We share many MEC members’ discomfort with these ads, and similar ads
of other suppliers. Brand-level concerns, however, do not detract from
the quality and functionality of Nike ACG products nor the progress that
Nike has made in its sourcing and environmental practices.
Q Hasn’t Nike been found by a US court to have lied about their
factory conditions?
Q Where can I get additional information?
Where can I direct my questions, feedback, and/or concerns?
A No. The California Supreme Court ruling, which overturned two
lower court rulings, never addressed the truth or falsity of any of
Nike’s statements. At issue in the Kasky vs. Nike case was a letter to
the editor written by a Nike spokesperson to the New York Times that
defended Nike’s sourcing practices. Nike was seeking that the same
First Amendment protection afforded to individuals also be afforded to
corporate statements–i.e., Nike sought First Amendment protection to
state its opinion.
A An MEC Sourcing Policy fact sheet is available from our stores. For more
in-depth information, including the full texts of our Sourcing Policy and
our Supplier Code of Conduct, please visit www.mec.ca/sourcing. You
can also email MEC’s Social and Environmental Responsibility Manager
at sourcing@mec.ca.
Reprint # P0730204E
In June 2003, Nike reached an out-of-court settlement with the plaintiff
that will see Nike pay $1.5 million to the Fair Labor Association, a US
workplace monitoring organization. The settlement ended the Kasky vs.
Nike case.
Information from third parties is also available:
Fair Labor Association: www.fairlabor.org
The Global Alliance for Workers and Communities:
www.theglobalalliance.org
Photo: Rich Wheater
For more information, visit www.mec.ca/sourcing