The declarations of intent of most fashion houses only look good on paper. This is the conclusion reached by the Clean Clothes Campaign in its "Company check 2019“, for which it examined 45 of the main European brands. Despite promises to the contrary, none of the companies analysed still ensure that their seamstresses receive a living wage in real terms.
© NGWF
Bangladesh's oldest and largest trade union federation for textile workers, the National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF), is turning 35. The association was founded in 1984 and now has 92,440 members and 86 registered trade unions at factory level.
After Months of wrestling and several times Postponement of the decision The Supreme Court finally reached an agreement on the Accord in Bangladesh on 19 May 2019: The agreement on building safety and fire protection guarantees continued work for 281 days.
In addition, the agreement includes the establishment of a national safety committee, which will take over the activities of the Accord, as well as all its infrastructure and staff after that deadline. It is an agreement between the Accord Steering Committee and the BGMEA (Employers' Association of the Bangladeshi Clothing Industry) and is endorsed by the Bangladeshi government.
Mother who lost her daughter in the collapse of the Rana Plaza building. Photo: © FEMNETBonn. Exactly six years ago, 1,134 seamstresses died in the rubble of a factory building in Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh. More than 1,800 people were injured. In the ‘Rana Plaza’ building, five textile factories were producing, many for large fashion companies, whose products are also hanging in our wardrobes.
After the disaster, the entire fashion industry declared ‘Never again Rana Plaza!’. But what is the situation today? Six years after the terrible catastrophe, repression and poverty wages dominate Bangladesh's garment industry. Progress in making factories safe is under threat.
Since November 2018, the decision of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh has been repeatedly postponed at monthly intervals. So also on 15 April 2019. Supposedly, it is now to be decided on May 19 whether the Accord, the building and fire protection agreement that has provided for around 1600 safe export factories, can remain in the country.
The government wants to get rid of the independent inspectors and claims to be able to carry out the factory inspections itself. However, this is questioned by both international buyers and the Clean Clothes Campaign.
Displaced workers are demanding their jobs back. Photo: @ FEMNET
Shocking figures are reported by our partner organisations from Bangladesh: More than 3,000 workers are being charged, and more than 11,000 workers from 105 factories have been laid off since January 2019. Their names are on a blacklist, nowhere can they find a job.
Their crime: They protested against the far too small increase in the monthly minimum wage to 8000 Taka (83,- EUR). The unions had demanded double that (166 euros), after all, the minimum wage has not been adjusted for 5 years. For the majority of workers, the basic wage hardly increases as a result of the revision. Hardly any family can live on the new minimum wage. Further background can be found in our Report of 16 January 2019.
Workers after a meeting in the office of the FEMNET partner organisation BCWS. Photo: S. Marx ⁇ FEMNET
Bonn. Workers protesting for the lawful implementation of wage increases are currently being fired, detained and harassed. The Bangladeshi trade union NGWF informs FEMNET:
On 1 February 2019, the NGWF union protested and called for the arrested workers to be immediately released, false accusations to be withdrawn and dismissed workers to be reinstated.
Bonn/Berlin. Living wages are a key element of decent work. In the countries of the Global South, however, a large proportion of employees cannot live humanely on hard-earned wages. This also applies, and in particular, to employees in the textile and clothing industry. The Alliance for Sustainable Textiles, founded in 2014 on the initiative of Federal Development Minister Dr. Gerd Müller, has started to change this. The civil society organisations in the Textile Alliance are now calling on all members to follow their commitment to action and to step up their efforts to pay living wages.
Photo: © Kristof VadionBonn. Five years of successful work are coming to an end. The Government of Bangladesh opposes the continued work of ACCORD, the agreement on fire safety and building safety in Bangladesh.
The call ‘Never again Rana Plaza!’ is still echoing. Nevertheless, the current decision of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh is intended to put an end to the further work of ACCORD as of 30 November 2018. "The ACCORD is a credible and effective programme that has ensured around 1600 safe export factories. But the situation in many factories is not yet certain, as European buyers see it, says Gisela Burckhardt, CEO of FEMNET and member of the Clean Clothes Campaign.
© Friedrich Ebert Foundation
In November 2018, FEMNET organizes a tour of Germany with two activists from Bangladesh and Myanmar. The women report on how seamstresses in the apparel industry are fighting for improved working conditions and explain how consumers can influence them.
