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 is the result of a yearlong inquiry into possible courses of action that would ad- dress the recruitment governance gap, with particular attention to the abuses that affect a large number of workers. It touches only lightly on problems with...Read More
The report emphasizes the importance of meaningful survivor engagement. Collaborating with survivors in all aspects of anti-trafficking efforts, including the development of practices, policies, and strategies – and prioritizing survivor leadershi...Read More
This brief has been prepared by the Issara Institute and Anders Lisborg, technical consultant. The paper provides a brief landscape analysis of mainstream trafficking victim assistance programs in Southeast Asia from the lens of empowerment, emph...Read More
It is clear that the Act is an innovative piece of legislation that has influenced parliaments across the world in efforts to combat the global evil of modern slavery. Other countries are following our lead, so it is of the utmost importance that we...Read More
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