SMETA 8.0 in one paragraph

Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit (SMETA) is the most widely used social compliance audit globally — over 75,000 active sites use it. The 8.0 revision rolled out in late 2025 and is now the default for most retailer programs. Three big shifts: stronger working-hours scrutiny, mandatory wage-data sampling, and a new section on responsible recruitment.

Five common Indian fail points

These are the gaps we flag most often during pre-audit preparation:

1. Working hours documentation

Many Indian factories still run paper sign-in registers, then transcribe to digital weekly. SMETA 8.0 auditors now sample raw biometric data — and the raw data is invariably different from the cleaned-up registers. The mismatch alone fails the audit, even if actual hours are compliant.

2. Overtime consent records

Indian law allows up to 50 hours overtime per quarter, but only with written worker consent. We see consent forms missing for 30% of overtime hours, on average. The fix is simple — capture consent at hire and re-confirm quarterly — but rare.

3. Wage payment method

SMETA 8.0 wants electronic payment records. Factories paying cash for piece-rate workers — still common in casting and forging — cannot produce the bank trail. Auditors flag this every time.

4. Recruitment fee documentation

If your factory uses labor contractors, you need contractor agreements proving zero recruitment fees charged to workers. Most contracts are silent on this point — which under 8.0 reads as non-compliant.

5. Grievance mechanism evidence

A suggestion box on the wall is not enough anymore. Auditors want a logged complaint, an investigation record, and a response — proving the system works in practice, not just on paper.

What auditors actually do differently in 8.0

Two procedural changes matter most:

  • Worker interview sampling is now stratified. Auditors must interview workers from each shift, each contractor, and each demographic group — not just whoever is easiest to talk to.
  • Wage data sampling is mandatory. Previously optional. Now: at least 10% of workers, including a mix of contract and permanent staff, get their wage records reviewed in detail.
From the audit floor

The single biggest reason factories fail SMETA 8.0 is documentation gaps, not actual violations. Build the paper trail before you build the corrective action plan.

Preparation timeline we recommend

If your factory is audited in 90 days, here's the sequence:

  1. Day 1–14: Pull six months of biometric data and reconcile with payroll. Fix mismatches now.
  2. Day 15–30: Audit overtime consent records. Backdated consent is not allowed — capture forward.
  3. Day 31–60: Move cash workers to bank/UPI payment. Document the transition.
  4. Day 61–80: Review contractor agreements. Add zero-recruitment-fee clauses.
  5. Day 81–90: Run an internal mock audit. Use a SMETA 8.0 checklist.

The audit isn't the end goal

A clean Sedex report opens doors with retailers — Tesco, Walmart, M&S all reference it. But the document itself isn't the win. The win is having a factory operation that survives any audit, including the unannounced ones that some buyers now run separately.

If your supplier treats SMETA as a once-a-year exam, expect mediocre results. If they treat it as a baseline operating standard, the audit takes care of itself.