Social+ OBP Component Standard (Ocean Bound Plastic)

What is the Social+ OBP Component Standard?

Integrated into the Ocean Bound Plastic (OBP) Certification Program by Zero Plastic Oceans (ZPO), the Social+ OBP Component is an innovative standard focusing on the "human" factor in the plastic waste collection process. It is applied as an add-on module to the OBP Collection Organization and OBP Neutrality Services Provider standards. Its primary goal is to improve the living and working conditions of independent waste collectors—who predominantly work in the informal sector—protect them from exploitation, and help integrate them into the formal societal system. It is designed for organizations that do not just want to protect the environment, but also aim to build a fair, inclusive, and ethical circular economy.

Key Technical Criteria of the Social+ OBP Standard

Going beyond traditional environmental audits, this standard establishes robust social mechanisms that directly benefit waste-picking communities. The technical framework can be summarized as follows:

• Independent Collector (IC) Community Manager:

  • The organization must appoint a dedicated "IC Community Manager" to serve as the primary point of contact between the collectors and the organization, advocating for their rights and addressing their specific needs.

• Child Protection:

  • There is absolute zero tolerance for child labor. However, the standard goes further by mandating that concrete remedial and preventive solutions be provided to keep children out of work and actively support their access to education and childcare facilities.

• Occupational Health, Safety, and Empowerment:

  • Occupational risks faced by collectors must be carefully assessed, and adequate personal protective equipment alongside OHS (Occupational Health and Safety) training must be provided to mitigate these risks.

  • Additionally, actionable empowerment workshops must be organized to support collectors with administrative, financial, and legal tasks (guiding them toward formalization and legal recognition).

• Fair Compensation and Price Premiums:

  • It is mandatory to provide collectors with fair, timely payments and additional "price premiums" that elevate their standard of living beyond basic market rates. For the organization's own formal employees, full compliance with the ETI (Ethical Trading Initiative) base code is required.

Who this standard is for

Social+ OBP is a component standard layered on an OBP collection, recycling, producer/user, or related module. It adds social criteria; it does not replace the core OBP origin and chain-of-custody modules.

What is certified

• Social criteria defined in the Social+ component at sites already in an OBP module
• Worker documentation, occupational safety, and related social topics in that text
• Combined audits where the buyer asked for OBP + Social+

What this standard does not cover

• A stand-alone social factory certificate (SA8000, BSCI, SEDEX) treated as OBP
• Ocean-bound origin without a core OBP module
• Chemical or recycled-content rules of GRS

Questions buyers and operators usually ask

If we already have BSCI, do we still need Social+?

A buyer who wrote Social+ on the purchase order wants the OBP component, not a generic social audit. BSCI may reduce duplicate questions but does not issue an OBP Social+ claim.

Can we certify Social+ without Collection or Recycling?

Social+ attaches to an OBP activity. There is no meaningful Social+ claim on a site that is not in a core OBP standard.

Does Social+ cover living wage for the whole group?

It covers what the current Social+ text requires at the certified sites. Do not promise a corporate living-wage policy that the component does not audit.

Will Social+ let us skip OBP collection-zone evidence?

No. Origin evidence stays in the Collection module. Social+ does not prove plastic was ocean-bound.

What to have ready before the audit

• The core OBP module certificate or application (Collection, Recycling, etc.)
• Worker contracts, hours, wage, and age records at the OBP sites
• Health and safety risk assessments for collection or plant work
• Any existing social-audit reports (as supporting evidence, not a substitute)
• Buyer specification that actually names Social+

Frequent findings

• Selling Social+ as if it were OBP recycled content
• BSCI report used in place of the Social+ audit
• Social+ requested by marketing while the core OBP module is missing
• Informal collectors in the chain with no worker records when Social+ is in scope