Higg FSLM and SLCP Explained: How Bangladesh Factories Can Prepare for Verification

Ask three people in a Bangladeshi garment factory what FSLM is and you may get three answers: an audit, a score, or a form the buyer sent. It is none of these exactly. The Higg Facility Social and Labor Module (FSLM) is a way of collecting and verifying data about working conditions, one time, so that it can be shared with many buyers.

This guide clears up how FSLM relates to SLCP, explains what the assessment covers, walks through verification step by step, and shows how a factory should prepare. It draws mainly on SLCP's and Cascale's own help pages, linked at the end.

SLCP, CAF, FSLM: what is what?

Three names cause most of the confusion.

• SLCP is the Social and Labor Convergence Program, which owns the framework.
• CAF is its Converged Assessment Framework: the Data Collection Tool (the questions), the Verification Protocol and the Verifier Guidance.
• Higg FSLM is Cascale's module built on that framework. It uses the same questions, and completing it counts as completing an SLCP assessment.

	SLCP CAF	Higg FSLM
Who runs it	SLCP	Cascale
Questions	Data Collection Tool	The same questions
Where you complete it	Any SLCP Accredited Host	Only on Worldly
Scoring	None. Raw, verified data	Adds Cascale's scoring framework
Verification	SLCP Verification Protocol	The same protocol, in a programme managed by Cascale
Sharing	SLCP Gateway or Accredited Host	Through Worldly and the Gateway

So if your buyer asks for "SLCP" and another asks for "FSLM", you may be able to answer both with one assessment. Ask each buyer which host and report they accept before you begin.

It is not an audit, and there is no pass or fail

SLCP describes its report as a verified record of raw, factual social and labour data. It gives no pass or fail, and it applies no code of conduct or audit standard. Brands and other users then apply their own standards to the data.

That has one important effect on how you should answer. The verifier is checking whether your answer is accurate, not whether it looks good. A truthful "no" with a plan to fix it is better than a "yes" the verifier has to correct, because the report shows both the corrections and an accuracy rate.

Choosing your Step

The questions are arranged in three Steps. You choose how far to go, but check first what your buyer requires.

Step	Name	What it adds	Likely fit
1	Essential	Core social and labour compliance questions	Often the best fit below 250 workers
2	Progressive	Management systems and industry-standard questions	What most larger brands ask for
3	Advanced	Beyond-standard questions on worker well-being and community impact	Factories ready to go further

What the assessment covers

Section	Who should own it	What you will need in a Bangladeshi factory
Facility Profile	Management, HR	Licences, worker counts, buildings, subcontracting
Recruitment and Hiring	HR, recruitment team	Appointment letters, age verification, hiring records
Working Hours	HR, payroll, operations	Time records, overtime approvals, holiday records
Wages and Benefits	HR, payroll, finance	Wage sheets, bank or mobile payment proof, leave and bonus records
Worker Treatment	HR, management	Harassment and discrimination policies, complaint records
Worker Involvement	HR, worker and union representatives	Participation committee records, grievance system
Health and Safety	H&S team, facilities	Fire, electrical and structural records, drills, medical care, chemical safety
Termination	HR, management	Resignation and dismissal files, final settlements
Management Systems (Steps 2–3)	Management, compliance team	Policies, risk assessments, internal audits, training
Above and Beyond (Step 3)	Management, CSR team	Well-being and community programmes

Legal questions and the 2026 amendment

Many questions ask whether something is "legally required", and SLCP publishes a Law Overlay for some countries to explain what the law says. The results report also shows flagged questions: responses that do not align with legal requirements.

This matters more than usual in Bangladesh right now, because the Labour Act was amended in April 2026, changing festival holidays, maternity benefit, compensation rules and committees. If your assessment period straddles the change, or your overlay has not caught up, talk to your verifier body early. The changes are explained in HR and Compliance in Bangladesh Garment Factories.

The process and its timeline

1. Prepare. Learn the tool, choose a Step, and decide between a self-assessment and a joint assessment. Register on the SLCP Gateway, and on Worldly for FSLM, and link the two accounts.
2. Gather data. The assessment covers the last 12 months. New facilities need at least three months of operating data.
3. Complete and submit. SLCP suggests about two weeks for a first-time user. Your verifier body must receive the assessment at least 10 working days before verification.
4. Verification. It must happen within two months of submission, and it includes an onsite visit. Once onsite verification begins, your data cannot change.
5. Review. Go through the full report with the verifier before it is submitted.
6. Finalise and share. You control who sees it, and the verified report can be shared with as many partners as you like through the Gateway at no cost.

Verification on Worldly, step by step

Before you start, link your Worldly account to the SLCP Gateway and agree terms and timing with a verifier body outside the platform. Then:

1. Post the fully completed FSLM self-assessment.
2. Click Select Verifier Body on the FSLM dashboard, and wait for the verifier to accept.
3. The verifier checks each response, and SLCP runs an automatic quality check. Once status changes to VRP, verification is in progress and you cannot change the verifier.
4. Review the result with the verifier.
5. Choose one action:
   • VRF, finalise. A one-time action confirming you have reviewed it.
   • VRE, request edit. For a change that does not need a dispute.
   • VRD, dispute. Only for a suspected breach of protocol or unprofessional conduct. Disagreement about a single question should be discussed with the verifier instead.

Self or joint assessment?

In a self-assessment, your own departments complete the tool. In a joint assessment, an outside organisation helps with answering or reviewing. Joint assessments are useful the first time, with one firm rule: a verifier body that helped you cannot verify the same assessment.

Where factories usually struggle

• Rushing the tool. Answering in a day, then correcting everything onsite.
• Answers that describe the policy, not the practice. The verifier will check the workers' reality through records and interviews.
• Inconsistent records. Time cards, payroll and production records that do not agree. This is the biggest risk, and the HR compliance guide explains how to prevent it.
• Data outside the 12-month period, or missing months.
• Subcontracting not disclosed. If work leaves the building, say so.
• Weak committee evidence. Minutes alone do not help if workers do not know their representatives.
• Uploading the wrong documents. SLCP warns against uploading records that could breach individual privacy. Policies, procedures, handbooks and certificates are appropriate; personal files should simply be ready onsite.
• Forgetting environmental overlap. Chemical storage, hazardous waste and health and safety questions rely on data also used in the Higg FEM.

An eight-week preparation plan

Weeks	Focus
1	Confirm buyer requirements: host, Step, deadline. Read the tool in full
2	Assign section owners, and get worker representatives involved
3–4	Gather 12 months of records, and check for gaps and contradictions
5	Fix what can be fixed now, and write down what cannot, with a plan
6	Complete the assessment, with a second person reviewing each section
7	Submit it, confirm the verifier body and share documents
8	Prepare managers and workers to speak honestly, and walk the factory

Prepare workers by explaining what the visit is for. Never coach answers. Coached interviews are easy to spot, and they damage trust in everything else you have shown.

Frequently asked questions

Is FSLM the same as SLCP? It uses the same questions and verification protocol, and adds Cascale's scoring on top. Completing the Higg FSLM counts as an SLCP assessment.

Does it replace social audits? It can reduce them, because one verified assessment can be shared with many buyers. Whether it replaces a particular audit depends on the buyer, so ask.

Who can verify? Only verifiers approved for the programme. You choose the verifier body on the host platform, and timing and prices are agreed with it directly.

Can a consultant fill it in for us? A consultant can guide you, and a joint assessment is allowed, but your own teams must understand and own the answers, because they will have to explain them onsite.

Is there a minimum score? SLCP itself gives no score at all. Your buyer may apply its own expectations to the data, or to the FSLM score.

Summary

• SLCP owns the framework. Higg FSLM uses the same questions on Worldly, with Cascale's scoring on top.
• It is verified data, not a pass-or-fail audit, so accuracy matters most.
• Choose Step 1, 2 or 3 based on buyer needs, and involve every department.
• Cover 12 months of data, submit 10 working days ahead, and verify within two months.
• Legal questions now need to reflect Bangladesh's 2026 labour law changes.
• Consistent attendance, payroll and production records decide most outcomes.

Preparing for your FSLM verification? I offer FSLM assessment consultancy to help you get ready.

Sources

1. SLCP Helpdesk, What is the difference between SLCP's CAF and Higg FSLM?
2. SLCP Helpdesk, The SLCP assessment process: an overview
3. SLCP Helpdesk, Preparing for your SLCP Assessment
4. SLCP Helpdesk, FAQ: Converged Assessment Framework (CAF)
5. Cascale, How to Higg, How to Verify My FSLM
6. Worldly, Introduction to Higg FSLM
7. Cascale, Higg Facility Tools

Cover photo: EqualStock on Unsplash.