Under the regime of private company or multi-stakeholder voluntary codes of conduct and industry social auditing, workers have absorbed low wages and unsafe and abusive conditions; labour leaders and union members have become the targets of both government and factory harassment and violence; and trade union power has waned. Nowhere have these private systems of codes and audits so clearly failed to protect workers as in Bangladesh’s apparel industry. However, international labour groups and Bangladeshi unions have succeeded in mounting a challenge to voluntarism in the global economy, persuading more than 180 companies to make a binding and enforceable commitment to workers’ safety in an agreement with 12 unions.
The extent to which this Bangladesh Accord will be able to influence the entrenched global regime of voluntary codes and weak trade unions remains an open question. But if the Accord can make progress in Bangladesh, it can help to inspire similar efforts in other countries and in other industries.
The paper presents the findings of a study on external policy measures adopted by the European Union and like-minded partners to address modern slavery in third countries. The study is intended to support the European Parliament in monitoring E...Read More
This Inter-Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in Persons (ICAT) Issue Brief explains the role of public procurement in preventing trafficking for forced labour. It outlines the international and national policy framework; elaborates on va...Read More
While some challenges around design and implementation remain, the aim of the reforms- to improve conditions for workers in the sector, help to restore Thailand's depleted fish stocks and ultimately to make the industry more safe, sustainable and pr...Read More
Over the last decade modern slavery in the UK has been on the rise and it is estimated that there are as many as 100,000 victims.* Women make up about a third of all victims of modern slavery in the UK, with many commonly forced into sexual exploita...Read More
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