Audit, Findings, and Remediation
Non-Conformity
A finding that shows a site, supplier, or process did not meet a stated requirement in a code, standard, law, or customer expectation.
Definition
A non-conformity is the gap between what the requirement says and what the review found in reality. That requirement might come from a supplier code, an audit method, a legal standard, or a customer rule.
Not all non-conformities look the same. A missing wage record, blocked fire exit, worker-fee allegation, and underage worker can all be non-conformities, but they should not trigger the same response.
How this source informs this section
SMETA Audit Overview
SMETA methodology is directly relevant because it turns observed gaps against stated requirements into formal findings and follow-up actions.
Why it matters
This is the basic unit of review and remediation work. How a team classifies, groups, and prioritizes non-conformities determines what gets escalated, what enters a corrective action plan (CAP), and what becomes a severe-issue case.
If teams treat every non-conformity the same, they usually overwhelm suppliers with low-value follow-up while missing the few issues that need urgent action.
How this source informs this section
Responsible Business Alliance Code of Conduct
The RBA code is useful here because it shows how the same broad requirement set can generate findings with very different severity and response needs.
Nuance
The same factual problem can move in severity if it repeats, affects more workers, or reveals document falsification or management-system breakdown.
A non-conformity label should describe the issue clearly, but the real decision comes from how the team interprets worker impact, recurrence, and control strength.
How this source informs this section
SMETA Audit Overview
Audit methodology context supports treating non-conformity as a starting point for judgment, not the final answer about severity or risk.
Sources
SMETA Audit Overview
Sedex · methodology
Used here for how SMETA describes audit scope, records review, worker interviews, findings, and corrective action plan (CAP) follow-up.
Responsible Business Alliance Code of Conduct
Responsible Business Alliance · code
Used here as a representative supplier-code source covering labor, health and safety, ethics, and management expectations.
