Supplier Code of Conduct

Our principles

We champion sustainable business practices on a daily basis by carefully managing our resources, passionately combining proven expertise and innovative ideas to incorporate them seamlessly into our day-to-day business together with our local, national and international business partners, with a view to creating a better, cleaner and more sustainable world for both ourselves and the generations to come. Fundamental principles such as fairness, safety and respect are at the heart of our actions and characterize our day-to-day business life, which is always focused on people.

We attach great importance to long-term partnerships, sustainable cooperation and responsible action and conduct, underpinned by the core values of business ethics, integrity and safety, as well as compliance with legal requirements and environmental standards. 

What we expect from our partners and suppliers

We place the same demands on our partners and suppliers and expect their actions to comply with international and national laws and regulations. In the same way that RONDO is committed to upholding ethical and moral principles, we require our partners to prioritise the same principles in their actions. In accordance with this Code of Conduct, we expect our partners and suppliers to comply with the following regulations:

• The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
• The fundamental conventions and international labour standards of the ILO (International Labour Organization)
• The principles of the United Nations Global Compact
• The applicable national regulations and sanction provisions

Health and safety regulations

Just as RONDO is committed to safeguarding the health and safety of its employees and third parties, we expect our partners and suppliers to guarantee a safe and risk-free work environment for their employees and third parties. Our partners and suppliers are obliged to comply with local and national laws and regulations and the safety laws and regulations that are in force at the production site in order to prevent accidents. The necessary legal permits, licenses and approvals must have been obtained for the work environment in question. Partners and suppliers must have documented policies and/or procedures regarding health and safety in the workplace, infrastructure and equipment.

Fairness and discrimination

At RONDO, we are fully committed to providing our employees with a safe and stimulating working environment that enables them to carry out their work under fair conditions and for competitive remuneration. We do not tolerate any kind of discrimination, violence or unlawful working conditions in the workplace. In accordance with the RONDO Code of Conduct, we expect our partners and suppliers to guarantee and enforce the same principles and conditions. We therefore require our partners and suppliers to ensure fair, market-standard working conditions for their employees and to include them in social security programmes at the locally applicable industry rates or the statutory minimum wage (whichever is higher). 

Child labour, forced labour and modern slavery

RONDO is committed to ensuring fair working conditions and does not accept any form of child labour, forced labour or modern slavery. Child labour includes any form of employment of children below the legal minimum age that impairs their physical, mental or social development. This includes activities that expose children to dangerous working conditions, prevent them from attending school or are contrary to international standards such as ILO Conventions 138 and 182 and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Such work is strictly prohibited under international and national legislation.

Forced labour and modern slavery are defined as work or activities that are performed involuntarily under threat of punishment, including unlawfully enforced overtime, human trafficking, debt bondage, forced prison labour, slavery or peonage. We expect our partners and suppliers to actively combat forced labour and not to employ children below the legal minimum age.

Unequal treatment

RONDO is committed to ensuring equal employment opportunities and expects its partners and suppliers not to discriminate on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, ethnic background, political orientation or religion when making decisions that affect their employees.

Fair competition

RONDO is an active supporter of a free market economy and fair competition. With this in mind, we expect our suppliers and partners to undertake not to enter into any agreements or arrangements with competitors that influence market prices or the availability of products and services. Any sharing of confidential information with competitors must be prevented.

Bribery and corruption

RONDO is committed to ensuring that its employees and third parties comply rigorously with the prohibition of corruption and bribery. Our partners and suppliers must not bribe third parties or government officials or accept unjustified benefits from anyone. Partners and suppliers must not directly or indirectly offer, acquire or solicit unauthorised financial benefits or other privileges.

Environmental protection

RONDO is committed to protecting and preserving the environment. We therefore expect our partners and suppliers to comply with the applicable environmental protection requirements and, where possible, to go beyond these requirements at all levels.

All activities that have an impact on the environment must be subject to the necessary permits and licenses from the relevant authorities.

Exports & imports – Conformity

RONDO respects and adheres to the statutory import and export regulations of each country as well as applicable sanctions and embargoes. With this in mind, we have clear expectations of our suppliers and partners that they will comply fully with all applicable laws, both when working with us and when doing business with third parties.

Information security and data protection

Our partners and suppliers may have access to confidential information, such as technical and business expertise or trade secrets, as well as the personal data of employees, customers or third parties. It is crucial that unauthorised access to such confidential information or personal data is systematically prevented. Access may only be granted to those who require it to fulfil their contractual obligations. Our partners and suppliers are obliged to uphold the highest security standards in their IT infrastructure. They must also comply with the applicable data protection laws and report any breaches of data security to the competent authorities and RONDO without delay.

Intellectual property

We respect the intellectual property rights of our business partners and competitors and expect the same level of integrity from our partners and suppliers. They are duty bound not to use the intellectual property of third parties without authorisation. In addition, they must safeguard our intellectual property, including designs and concepts derived therefrom, with the utmost care and protect it from damage, loss, theft, misappropriation or unauthorised use. Sharing or publishing information about our innovations or discoveries is strictly prohibited.

Final provisions

Implementation

This Code of Conduct applies to all our partners and suppliers without exception. In the course of the approval process, new partners and suppliers must undertake to fulfil the requirements set out in the Code of Conduct.

Subsuppliers

We also expect our partners and suppliers to ensure that their own suppliers enforce and comply with the requirements and provisions of this Code of Conduct in an appropriate manner.

Support

To strengthen our collaboration, we proactively offer our partners and suppliers support in their endeavours to optimise their performance in terms of compliance with the Code of Conduct.

Consequences of breaching the Code of Conduct

We reserve the right to terminate business relationships with partners and suppliers if they breach our Code of Conduct and do not make sufficient improvements. We are also entitled to terminate contractual relationships without notice in the event of breaches of local, national or international laws and regulations. In this context, a breach of this Code of Conduct constitutes good cause for immediate termination of the contract.

This Code of Conduct was enacted by the Board of Directors of the RONDO Group on 4 December 2024 and comes into force on 1 January 2025.