How We Ensure Good Working Conditions At Our Eco Factory In Estonia
If you have been scrolling around our pages or have been following us for a while, then you most likely know we have an eco factory in Estonia where all our products are brought to life. You might have questions about the working conditions, the level of sustainability or the overall wellbeing of our employees. To reassure you, we have written everything down so sit back and keep reading.
Why is Our Factory Based in Estonia?
Why exactly do we have a factory in Estonia and not in the UK, China or the Middle East? Because after all, they seem to be the most obvious options. Most businesses source their products from China, but we consciously decided to establish our core factory elsewhere. As we value sustainability and good working conditions, we find it extremely important to have control over the processes in the factory. Because the factory is based in Estonia, we can easily go there without having to fly to the likes of China or the Middle East for over 10 hours (which, of course, isn’t too great for the environment either). Whereas the textile industry in the UK was huge in the Industrial Revolution, this has greatly declined and therefore, establishing a factory in our own home country was not our first choice.
What Are The Working Conditions Like In The Eco Factory?
In one word: good. The wellbeing of our Estonian employees is of great importance to us and therefore, we act accordingly and take measures to improve their working conditions. We use Sedex audits to ensure good working conditions. For every audit, they talk to all of our employees about workers rights, pay level and overall working conditions. We never pay minimum wage, instead we always pay a minimum of 20% and above and offer bonus schemes. Our employees in the Estonian factory work collaboratively to promote productivity, but to ensure their wellbeing, they also get regular breaks. We even have a break room for use when workers get tired! The overall working environment is good and clean and hygiene levels are maintained.
Our Estonian employees are well-educated and are working with technology on a daily basis. All of the finishing touches are done by hand, that means that all pillows and duvets are hand stitched to deliver the highest possible quality.
Our Zero Waste Policy
At The Fine Bedding Company, sustainability is one of our top priorities. To ensure that this is translated into everything we do, we search for like-minded people to work with, which means our employees share the same values. Our factory in Estonia is progressively getting more environmentally friendly, with 42 energy monitors throughout the factory, no use of paper and a zero waste policy. Wherever we can, we recycle our materials that go to waste. Any waste of the fillings that are used to create our duvets, are being used to fill up soft toys. That way, we reuse our materials without anything going to waste.
Besides this, our factory uses 100% renewable energy since 2017 which makes our production process a lot more eco-friendly. We are working towards having a carbon neutral factory and supply chain and expect to achieve this in 2022.
