SUSTAINABLE BD
TO ADVERTISE
Contact Rani Mahendru + 91-11-47390000 ( 512 ) rani @ apparelresources . com
GOING TO A GOOD EVENT ?
Send your industry gossip , photos and news to isaxena @ apparelresources . com
Workers ’ sound health , a commercial incentive for RMG sector
To reveal that the expenditure on workers ’ health-related issues have business benefits , is a task which needs perfect projection and simulation while to motivate and mobilise the garment factory owners to invest in sustainable work environment is another daunting task in itself . SNV – a more than 50 year old organisation founded in the Netherlands with local presence in 29 of the poorest countries in Asia , Africa and Latin America where its global team of local and international advisors work with the local partners to equip communities , businesses and organisations with the tools , knowledge and connections needed to increase their incomes and gain access to basic services – has taken the initiative to do the both .
In Bangladesh SNV ’ s area of focus encompasses readymade garment industry and this is its first inclusive business project in the apparel sector . “ It is always important to consider the needs and concerns of all the stakeholders in the programme design . We are engaging directly with the management so that there is buy-in for sustainability of the initiative . Women workers are the primary focus in this project as they are mostly vulnerable towards accessing services . Nevertheless , a lot of consideration towards gender equity has been made , and male co-workers and supervisors sensitized to facilitate and support the women ’ s cause ,” informs Farhtheeba Rahat Khan , Team Leader , Working With Women Project – SNV .
SNV is now creating awareness among the factory owners about how international organisations take the indicators of ‘ reputation building ’ seriously . The organisation accumulates such data directly and uploads on its website on a regular basis . In a case study in Egypt , SNV found that workers ’ health contributed
Jamal Uddin ( L ) – Inclusive Business Capacity Building Advisor with Farhtheeba Rahat Khan – Team Leader , Working With Women Project – SNV
to the ROI by 2.4:1 ratio . “ There are few indicators ; if worker migration , absenteeism or late attendance is reduced , it is definitely going to increase the productivity . Now , if you look from a worker ’ s perspective , if she / he has more health costs , she / he will put pressure on industry to increase his / her salary . But , when there are no such costs , there is no requirement of additional income . Here , you have to at least ensure the theoretical part of sustainability which is indirectly going to help the businesses ,” delineates Jamal Uddin , Inclusive Business Capacity Building Advisor , Working With Women Project – SNV .
Before starting the project , SNV conducted a study which revealed that , on an average , a garment worker in Bangladesh needs around Taka 6,000 for healthcare every year . Consequently , SNV engaged one of the financial institutions in Bangladesh with which it formed an insurance policy for workers the premium of which is only Taka 500 per year while the coverage is Taka 15,000 – two-anda-half times greater than the average health expenditure found in the study .
“ Women workers are the primary focus in this project as they are mostly vulnerable towards accessing services …”
Farhtheeba Rahat Khan , Team Leader , Working With Women Project – SNV
“… if worker migration , absenteeism or late attendance is reduced , it is definitely going to increase the productivity …”
Jamal Uddin , Inclusive Business Capacity Building Advisor , Working With Women Project – SNV
With regard to healthcare , the study also found that there were three common challenges generally faced by RMG workers : accessibility , affordability and availability . SNV addressed all these issues adequately while also taking owner ’ s benefits into consideration .
“ Affordability was addressed by the workers health insurance policy . Accessibility was taken care of by setting up health care facilities in close vicinity of the factory , from where the workers would get all required health services , under one umbrella ,” explains Jamal . Not to interfere with the factory ’ s work schedule / operation , SNV has made doctors available within the centre along with a female service provider exclusively for the women workers , six days a week .
Apart from that , building awareness among workers was another area of major concern . “ Since workers aren ’ t much educated , they do not always remember information in detail if taught . As such our health partner shows them videos ( one particular topic a day ) and conduct interactive sessions . Such pictorial representations and visuals stand way out in building awareness and are working towards behavioural change , which we are witnessing since the starting of the project ,” Farhtheeba maintains .
This is a pilot project funded by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands . In this pilot project , only 20 interested factories / companies were selected as SNV ’ s prime objective is to create role models that would inspire and motivate others to follow suit . SNV , however , has plans to increase this number in the future while also exploring opportunities to take the project to countries such as Vietnam , Cambodia and Indonesia .
28 Apparel Online Bangladesh | MAY 2017 | www . apparelresources . com