Zenith

• Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: gold and gemstone mining are linked to child labour, forced labour and mercury poisoning.
• Responsible Jewellery Council certified: Industry code for jewellery businesses covering human rights and responsible sourcing. Its Chain of Custody standard traces materials; the basic certification does not.
• Owns or runs its own production
• Uses high-risk raw materials such as tanned leather, mica or artisanal gold.
• "Made in Switzerland" only means the last major stage happened there: under customs and consumer law, watch movements, cases and dials, and cast or set parts can be made elsewhere. It hasn't shown where those earlier stages happen, so where it's made counts towards On Track but not Good.
• It is Responsible Jewellery Council certified, but its stones and gold aren't traced to the mine. The Kimberley Process only covers diamonds that fund rebel wars, not abuses by governments or forced labour.

Research notes Zenith designs and makes its watches and in-house movements at its own 18-building manufacture in Le Locle, Switzerland, where it has worked since 1865. It has been an RJC member since 2005 and holds Code of Practices certification valid to December 2026, but no Chain of Custody certification. It publishes no supplier list, audit results, sources of gold or diamonds, wage policy or brand-level modern slavery statement. In October 2026 Zenith opened a staff consultation on cutting about half of the 196 jobs at Le Locle as it moves to fewer, higher-priced watches.