Ege Carpets is CSR audited during COVID-19

 

In cooperation with Bureau Veritas Certification, Ege Carpets succeeded in carrying out their annual CSR audit considering current COVID-19 restrictions.

When the Danish government at the end of October tightened the restrictions in connection with COVID-19, Ege Carpets decided to close their doors to visitors just a few days before their annual CSR audit. Bureau Veritas Certification was supposed to carry out the audit at the company’s two factories according to DS 49001.

This meant that the previous physical audit had to be converted into a remote audit. Various Teams meetings were held during a couple of days. Fortunately, Bureau Veritas Certification has many years’ experience in remote audits globally, and COVID-19 just strengthened this experience.

”During a very short time we made a new scheme with online meetings, to make it possible to carry out all the confidential employee interviews on which a CSR audit is mainly based. A PC was made available to the production staff, and they just had to show up without touching the PC. Then I provided access and let people out of the meeting at a distance” tells Dorthe Aaboe Kallestrup, CSR Manager at Ege Group, and she continues:

”The question was how to create a confidential atmosphere and openness in personal interviews about subjects like job satisfaction, sexism, reorganisation and layoffs when everything had to take place online but we succeeded! In connection with this we would like praise Bureau Veritas’ auditor, Stine Josefsen, as she was able to create a positive and confidential atmosphere on the screen.”

Stine Josefsen, CSR Product Manager and Lead Auditor at Bureau Veritas Certification, highly appreciates the praise and the positive feedback. However, it is no secret that she would rather visit the companies physically as soon as the COVID-19 situation allows this. Confidential employee interviews are an essential part of a CSR audit, and she prefers to sit next to the person she interviews.