News & Press Releases - Living Wage now!

© FEMNET

Regular trips by FEMNET employees to our partners in the Southeast Asian production countries ensure that our projects have a local impact. The direct exchange with representatives of trade unions and organisations on the ground gives us important insights and assessments into the developments of the sector, and project projects can be launched according to jointly planned goals. The visit of foreign coordinator Daniela Wawrzyniak and Aika-Maresa Fischbeck, consultant for foreign projects and campaign work, to Dhaka at the end of October 2023 became a reality check: The trip took both of them right into the middle of the current wage negotiations in the textile industry.

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© NGWF

Joint press release by FEMNET, SÜDWIND Institute, INKOTA network and HEJSupport

The recently set minimum wage in Bangladesh for garment workers at 12,500 taka per month (106 euros) continues to lead to protests and riots. Workers are deliberately injured, abducted, wrongfully charged, imprisoned, imprisoned or even killed. However, there has been no concrete support for the trade unions' demands for a higher minimum wage from purchasing companies so far. Until 26.11.2023 is now the last opportunity to take an effective position.

 

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© CCC

Joint press release by FEMNET and the Clean Clothes Campaign

Bonn/Berlin. The government of Bangladesh on Tuesday set the new minimum wage for the country's 4.4 million garment workers at 12,500 taka per month (106 euros). The amount is far below the 23,000 taka demanded by trade unions. According to studies, this amount is necessary for a decent life in Bangladesh. Although many fashion brands say they are committed to living wages, few support the unions' demand. For workers in the garment sector, the new minimum wage means that they will continue to struggle to survive and will be forced to work excessive overtime, take out loans, skip meals or even send their children to work instead of school.

 

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© Shahidul Islam

After five years, the minimum wage in Bangladesh will be renegotiated. Trade unions are calling for an increase in wages to 23,000 Taka in order to secure the basic supply of workers. In recent months, trade union intimidation by factory owners has become more common. Following the murder of trade unionist Shahidul Islam, FEMNET is reaching further worrying news indicating a growing risk for workers and trade unionists.

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Workers at a NGWF trade union demonstration in Bangladesh

Ten years ago, the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh collapsed, killing more than 1,000 people. Building safety in factories has been improved by international agreements, such as the Accord. But what has happened in terms of working conditions? In February we were in Bangladesh and spoke with our partner organization NGWF.

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Wages that come to life – this is what the EU citizens’ initiative calls for with its campaign ‘Good Clothes and Fair Pay” Currently, the majority of textile workers in the global apparel industry cannot afford to live in a decent home, eat a healthy diet or go to the doctor. The national minimum wage is often insufficient to cover the cost of living.

A living wage is not a luxury, it is a basic human right!

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Cover image of the new brochure

As new data from the Fashion Checker shows, transparency remains the key to holding fashion companies accountable when workers, trade unions and activists ask them not to leave their workers in distress and despair during the pandemic. None of the fashion companies surveyed guarantees that workers in their supply chain will receive the same wage as before during the pandemic - let alone a living wage. In addition, the data from the Fashion Checker show users the gap between a living wage and the actual wages paid in the factories.

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The range of wage losses for millions of textile workers in the face of cancelled orders and collective redundancies is shown in a recently published report by the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC). Although the figures are based only on rough calculations, they give an indication of the sums that would be needed to provide for the workers.

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