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The Better Buying Index Report, 2019, for the first-time ever, presents a geographic analysis of the purchasing practices of brands and retailers in the apparel, footwear, and household textile sector as experienced by their global suppliers headquartered in key locations around the world. An analysis of differences in brands’ and retailers’ performance is presented to compare the relatively “better” and “worse” practices used across supplier locations. The Index Report compiles performance of 71 leading brands and retailers based on 802 ratings submitted by suppliers headquartered in 52 countries. Scores are based on a five-star scale from zero stars (worst performance) to five stars (best performance).

Better Buying is a global initiative that provides retailers, brands, and suppliers a cloud-based platform to obtain data-driven insights into purchasing activities. Better Buying’s transparency fosters sustainable partnerships and mutually beneficial financial results and other outcomes. Anonymous supplier ratings of buyer purchasing practices obtained by the independent third-party initiative are aggregated, scored, and made available to the participating retailers, brands, and suppliers with the goal of accelerating change and industry-wide improvements across supply chains.

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Die Herstellung von Berufsbekleidung ist ein aufstrebender Sektor in der indischen Textilindustrie. Doch wie in der Modebranche kommt es zu gravierenden Arbeitsrechtsverletzungen. Durch faire Beschaffung kann die öffentliche Hand dazu beitragen, die Bedingungen zu verbessern. Das FEMNET-Factsheet fasst die wichtigsten Ergebnisse der zugehörigen Studie zusammen.

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Die Textilindustrie ist ein zentraler Wirtschaftssektor Tunesiens. Charakteristisch ist die starke Abhängigkeit vom europäischen Markt. Wie in der Modebranche kommt es zu gravierenden Arbeitsrechtsverletzungen. Durch faire Beschaffung kann die öffentliche Hand dazu beitragen, die Bedingungen zu verbessern. Das FEMNET-Factsheet fasst die wichtigsten Ergebnisse der zugehörigen Studie zusammen.

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Immer mehr Kommunen achten beim Einkauf bestimmter Waren, etwa Berufsbekleidung, auf die Einhaltung zumindest grundlegender Arbeitsrechte. Die große Marktmacht der öffentlichen Hand kann ein enormer Hebel sein, um Arbeitsbedingungen zu verbessern. Das FEMNET-Factsheet informiert über Missstände in der Produktion von Arbeitskleidung und wie Einkäufer*innen Verantwortung übernehmen können.

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Faced with limits of the dominant forms of private regulation, lead firms in global production networks (GPNs) are increasingly turning towards new approaches involving more collective and labour-inclusive approaches to tackle substandard labour conditions. Two notable examples of such new governance initiatives in the global garment industry are the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh (the   Bangladesh Accord)   developed in the aftermath of the Rana Plaza disaster, and Action Collaboration Transformation (ACT), a living wage initiative spearheaded by a group of garment brands and retailers. What is unique about these agreements is that they are inclusive of trade unions (local and/or global) and transnational in nature, covering supply chains of multiple multinational corporations. These initiatives, which we term transnational collective industrial relations, stand in stark contrast to firm-specific, unilateral corporate codes of conduct, which have been the dominant model of private governance since the 1990s.

This paper explores evolving relationships among lead firms and other stakeholders in the emerging field of transnational industrial relations. Considering the experiences of major German and UK garment retailers and brands, we examine how involvement in transnational collective industrial relations has influenced lead firms’ relationships to other stakeholders, particularly rival firms and unions. Data considered is mainly based on interviews with German and UK garment lead firms and members of global union federations (GUFs). Initial findings indicate that lead firms increasingly view GUFs as important and legitimate partners for managing labour challenges in GPNs. Lead firms also positively describe intensified collaboration with rival firms. We discuss whether evolving interfirm and firm-union relations in the global garment industry can be seen as promising steps towards institutionalizing collective forms of transnational labour regulation with potentially better outcomes for labour standards. Through this research, we seek to contribute to the literature on global labour governance by shedding light on the foundation of new governance solutions, particularly the dynamically evolving relationships among lead firms and other stakeholders as collective actors.

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