ISO Says No Certification to Social Responsibility Standard

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO), developer of the newly published ISO 26000 standard on social responsibility, has indicated that the standard is not to be used for certification. ISO plans to take action against claims of certification to ISO 26000.

ISO 26000 provides guidance on what social responsibility is and how organizations can operate in a socially responsible manner. It is not a management system standard and does not contain requirements against which an organization or its management system could be audited and certified.

The scope of ISO 26000 makes it clear that it is not to be used for certification, saying: "This international standard is not a management system standard. It is not intended or appropriate for certification purposes or regulatory or contractual use. Any offer to certify, or claims to be certified to ISO 26000 would be a misrepresentation of the intent and purpose and a misuse of this international standard. As this international standard does not contain requirements, any such certification would not be a demonstration of conformity with this international standard.

According to ISO, any claims of certification to ISO 26000 are misleading and are not a demonstration of conformity to ISO 26000. ISO members have been asked to report any organizations providing certification to ISO 26000 to the ISO Central Secretariat.

ISO develops standards to encourage good practice worldwide in conformity assessment activities, including certification. ISO does not audit or issue certification to its standards or accredit certification bodies, which operate independently of ISO. ISO does not control the activities of accreditation bodies or certification bodies, and the ISO logo does not appear on certificates of conformity to ISO standards.

The International Accreditation Forum (IAF), whose members accredit certification bodies deemed competent to carry out their certifications, has passed a resolution noting that ISO 26000 explicitly states that it is not intended or appropriate for certification. The IAF resolution notes that any certification would be a misuse of the standard, and urges certification bodies not to promote or provide certification to ISO 26000.

Read the ISO news release.