More Work Is Needed to Set International Frameworks and Standards

The Rana Plaza disaster of March 2013 exposed many faultlines in the fashion ecosystem. That tectonic day threw up a whole lot of issues that were furiously debated the world over. One critical issue was the seemingly confrontational interface between business and human rights. In this freewheeling conversation, Salil Tripathi, Senior Advisor at the Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB) and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena, IHRB Research Fellow and Director at the Subir and Malini Chowdhury Center for Bangladesh Studies at the University of California at Berkeley, talk about the lessons for business and human rights.

Subir Ghosh

24 April 2023

9 minutes

Long Story, Cut Short

While much progress has been made, and the buildings are safer, workers aren't safe, due to the lack of social safety net and other forms of insecurity.
There is need to reimagine how supply chains are created and linked, and how we need to enhance protection for the most vulnerable.
Bangladesh has cleaned up its act significantly, and its focus on environmental factors is noteworthy and commendable.

Bangladesh has a long history of vibrant and vocal labour movements, especially with female-led organisations and with female organisers who have been workers in the garment industry themselves. Much of the progress in the industry can be attributed to these organisers who have made a big difference in the industry over time.

Woman Force Bangladesh has a long history of vibrant and vocal labour movements, especially with female-led organisations and with female organisers who have been workers in the garment industry themselves. Much of the progress in the industry can be attributed to these organisers who have made a big difference in the industry over time. Maruf Rahman / Pixabay

texfash.com: There are many points that we can start from, but let's begin with a study that Motoko Aizawa and you had done long ago. There was this quote, almost a word of caution: "Bangladesh will need many more better-trained incorruptible inspectors and independent unions that can negotiate without fear." But, that study was from 2016. Do you think that has happened? If so, to what extent?
Salil Tripathi and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena: We have to acknowledge that Bangladesh has not suffered an accident on Rana Plaza's scale in the past decade. That is of course a good thing. There is no one reason why that happened; it is a combination of factors which includes consumer activism, brand attention, investor and civil society scrutiny, as well as Bangladesh's own efforts to improve the infrastructure. The buildings are maintained better and wages have improved to some extent. But we are still some way away from having truly independent unions, in fact there are often severe crackdowns on workers organising) and despite reforms over the last decade, union density remains extremely low in Bangladesh, at about three percent. And the test of governmental supervision will be when brand attention wavers. So, it is too early to declare victory by any side.

But in the briefing paper we have just published, we find that while much progress has been made, and the buildings are safer, workers aren't safe, due to the lack of social safety net and other forms of insecurity. Second, the problem is not unique to garment exports sector in Bangladesh—other factories that do not export have serious problems too; other sectors are hazardous; and other countries, too, are vulnerable. Finally, there is need to reimagine how supply chains are created and linked, and how we need to enhance protection for the most vulnerable.

Ultimately, there is need to improve national policies, but more work is also needed to set international frameworks and standards.

There is no doubt that the Bangladesh RMG industry has cleaned up considerably. What do you make of the progress? The country leads in the number of green/LEED factories in the apparel sector. And yet, workers are still having to demand higher wages. Do you think Bangladesh's strides in one area has shifted focus from the other (i.e. wages)?
Salil Tripathi and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena: Wages in Bangladesh have been historically low, and while there has been some increase, there is a significant gap between what unions call a living wage and the minimum wage the government wishes to legislate. That pressure will continue. You are right, Bangladesh has cleaned up its act significantly, and its focus on environmental factors is noteworthy and commendable. The focus after Rana Plaza was primarily on the improving the infrastructure itself (building safety, fire safety, electrical safety). Though these are critical, it did take away from issues like inadequate wages, lack of savings, and the lack of a safety net that workers must face constantly. We showed in an earlier study how devastating the pandemic was for workers and their livelihoods, because the wages have remained inadequate. Millions of garment workers found themselves out of work, furloughed without pay, and their savings depleted (for example, the study finds that 65% of female workers said they didn't save or used their savings to buy food)—all of this occurred without a safety net to fall back on.

We should also not forget that Bangladesh has a long history of vibrant and vocal labour movements, especially with female-led organisations and with female organisers who have been workers in the garment industry themselves. Much of the progress in the industry can be attributed to these organisers who have made a big difference in the industry over time. Local activists have sought to secure higher wages, maternity leave, education for children, and better housing, as well as combatting sexual harassment. Through local activism, the situation is better than it was before, but it needs to continue in this direction as many issues remain. Often times, when international organisations or international multi-stakeholder initiatives say they are taking into account the views of workers or the views of labour unions, it usually means they are taking those people into account who are based in the Global North. These bodies are doing great work, but it takes away from the real grassroots kind of organising, composed of those who do not have access to the same media outlets or resources. Their voices tend to get pushed out and that is something we need to be aware of.

Subir Ghosh

SUBIR GHOSH is a Kolkata-based independent journalist-writer-researcher who writes about environment, corruption, crony capitalism, conflict, wildlife, and cinema. He is the author of two books, and has co-authored two more with others. He writes, edits, reports and designs. He is also a professionally trained and qualified photographer.

See Full Bio

We cannot let the government off the hook. It needs to enact laws that improves workers’ rights and enforce that legislation. While that is not always possible, a combination of private initiatives, multi-stakeholder initiatives, corporate initiatives, and consumer pressure is ultimately necessary to make a change. One focus or one avenue is not enough. We have not come to the ideal framework in any country. Change in this industry is slow, but we have definitely seen some progress happen over the last several decades.

Salil Tripathi

Senior Advisor

Institute for Human Rights and Business

Only the other day there was a report about 54% of Rana Plaza survivors still being unemployed. Surely, the high-profile, high-decibel campaigns of Western fashion NGOS have not worked. If things, indeed, have improved, then why should survivors of that tragedy still be looking for work?
Salil Tripathi and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena: Survivors looking for work is bad enough; there have also been instances of some Rana Plaza survivors not having been compensated adequately or at all, so the problem of better treatment of Rana Plaza survivors remains. There has been an industry consolidation, however, due to COVID-19, which sent some of the smaller manufacturers out of business, and it has led to business consolidations; at such times, due to the need to have economies of scale, some job losses are inevitable, but it is clear that in hiring new workers, preference should be given to those who were victims of the disaster. NGO campaigns can work, but only up to a point. As often is the case after largescale tragedies, there is initially a lot of outrage, campaigns, and mobilisation. Unfortunately, after a while, people go back to their own lives, but the victims continue to suffer. There needs to be continued awareness about what happened, why, and what still needs to happen to improve the sector.

If one were to follow Western NGOs and their campaigns, one would conclude that it were the Western brands and retailers alone who were responsible. But haven't the real culprits got away? The local inspectors, the local law enforcement authorities, the local politicians, for instance. Your comments, please.
Salil Tripathi and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena: Western NGOs and civil society will inevitably focus on the target closest to them and the target most likely to respond, so they have focused on western brands—being brands, they are susceptible to consumer pressure, and many of the younger consumers are conscientious. But you are right; the factories are in the developing world, and we surely don't want a situation where multinationals take control of those factories—it is important for independent, domestic, home-grown companies to survive and thrive and create their own mark internationally. And it is also widely-known that many of Bangladesh's politicians themselves have an interest in the RMG sector—as investors, as beneficiaries of the industry, or engaged with the sector through close ties. This raises the risk of state capture by a powerful sector. And there has to be pressure on them, although that pressure can best come from the domestic civil society, and not from international NGOs. Many developing countries resent foreign NGOs because their governments argue that the NGOs are infringing on their sovereignty. That is not a valid argument, but it has nationalistic resonance.

For decades, many global brands and buyers have been able to use their unequal distribution of bargaining power within these supply chains to require their suppliers to meet the competitive pressures within the industry by producing smaller batches of increasing varieties of products more rapidly and at decreasing prices. This has created a perverse incentive structure which de-incentivises factories to pursue good labour rights and good human rights.

Of course, we also cannot let the government off the hook. It needs to enact laws that improves workers’ rights and enforce that legislation. While that is not always possible, a combination of private initiatives, multi-stakeholder initiatives, corporate initiatives, and consumer pressure is ultimately necessary to make a change. One focus or one avenue is not enough. We have not come to the ideal framework in any country. Change in this industry is slow, but we have definitely seen some progress happen over the last several decades.

Briefing takeaways

Progress has been made, and buildings are safer, but more holistic protections for workers are weak. This is because the garment industry still largely relies on fast-fashion and ‘just-in-time’ operating models, which exerts tremendous downward pressure on wages and costs and forces suppliers to cut corners.
The problem is not unique to garment exports from Bangladesh - other factories, other sectors, and other countries are vulnerable. This is a global supply chain issue.
We need to reimagine how supply chains operate, and vastly improve built-in protection for the most vulnerable workers.

Source: Rana Plaza 10 Years On: Lessons for Human Rights and Business

Reimagining supply chains

Companies must be transparent about how their supply chains are structured and what steps they are taking to ensure compliance with international standards.
Companies can redesign supplier contracts to adopt model contract clauses that include the UN Human Rights Guiding Principles.
More should be done to shift from indirect sourcing models for garment production, which result in short-term interactions with several suppliers based on minimising costs and maxmising order volumes, to direct relationship models, helping to create long-term partnerships and therefore better protection of labour rights.

Source: Rana Plaza 10 Years On: Lessons for Human Rights and Business

For decades, many global brands and buyers have been able to use their unequal distribution of bargaining power within these supply chains to require their suppliers to meet the competitive pressures within the industry by producing smaller batches of increasing varieties of products more rapidly and at decreasing prices. This has created a perverse incentive structure which de-incentivises factories to pursue good labour rights and good human rights.

Sanchita Banerjee Saxena

Director

Subir and Malini Chowdhury Center for Bangladesh Studies

This is not to absolve Western brands and retailers, but don't you think turning the spotlight on them consistently and continuously for ten long years has been a tad unfair on them? If workers are not paid a living wage in my country, then I should be to blame. If workers are made to work in inhuman and unsafe conditions, then I should be to blame. How do you react to that?
Salil Tripathi and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena: We don't think the pressure is inappropriate. The fact remains, as the pandemic showed, that despite knowing the structural vulnerabilities of the sector, when the crunch came, very few western companies acted responsibly. Many wanted to protect their own liquidity, and placed the interests of their own shareholders above those of the workers who formed the weakest link. We published a joint report, which outlines some of our findings.

Of course, it is tricky terrain. We carried a piece on a Cornell study: "One of the biggest challenges towards advancing policies for an inclusive and sustainable apparel industry is the pressure on governments to “remain cheap” by not introducing policies that could raise production costs and drive investors to competitor countries." At the end of the day, it's a question of orders. Most apparel-making countries are tiny (compared to the US, China, India), and they really need the forex. Countries are unlikely to clamp down on wages. So, what can be done?
Salil Tripathi and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena: Greater consumer awareness, and better terms of trade, so that the downward pressure on costs, due to the reliance on 'fast fashion,' as the norm, changes. The whole fast fashion model of doing business in the industry has proven detrimental to both labour rights and the environment. The rampant consumerism and wasteful society that we are living in means that a lot of the time people are literally throwing away clothes to stay on par with the new influx of fashion seasons. We know this has had a big impact on the garment workers, such as with working overtime and having to produce large quantities very quickly. It is a chicken and egg scenario: are consumers demanding more frequent changes to the fashion season and then global brands are giving into it or are global brands presenting this and consumers are responding? If consumers refused to be a part of it anymore, it would have a big impact. That is beyond one company to achieve; it is also beyond one government to achieve. Only collective action can change that. Fast fashion also has an impact on climate issues, just in terms of sheer waste. A paradigm shift is needed.

Not to be insensitive to Rana Plaza, of course. But haven't activist organisations been obsessed with Bangladesh? After all, there are scores of other countries (where working conditions are not so great either) where there are millions of garment workers. Comments, please.
Salil Tripathi and Sanchita Banerjee Saxena: If you look at the scale of the disaster, there are few that meet the kind of figures we saw with Rana Plaza, in terms of deaths and injuries. True, there have been other instances of accidents, including factory fires, in India and Pakistan, and some years ago in China too, but the devastating scale of what happened in Bangladesh in 2013, and the earlier year, was unprecedented. Besides, as we argue in our paper, the garment sector is one of the better-run sectors in Bangladesh. When you look at other sectors that are crucial for the economy—shipbreaking, brickmaking, fisheries, transport—the hazardous conditions are quite glaring. So, the focus on Bangladesh is justified, but it is not the only country where such problems are common, and there is no room for complacency.

Furthermore, when attention turns to one country in particular, it also gives us a real, tangible example of not only the impacts of what happens when social responsibilities of business are neglected, but what works and what doesn't work in finding solutions. If Bangladesh continues to pursue social change in the textile industries and other sectors and has more success, then it can offer a blueprint that other countries have few excuses not to follow.