In the last one year, a dozen or so reports have been released by various NGOs, or what the international media calls‘ watchdog agencies’ on labour rights’ violations in garment manufacturing countries. The common thread that runs through all the reports is that despite claims to the contrary, workers are still facing many issues, including harassment and physical abuse at factories. Even retailers are many a time turning a blind eye to get products as per their lead time and price point requirements. Though the concern for the workers is justified and more changes do need to happen, the way these reports are put together and presented is questionable, as is the intention behind the reports. |
This is not the first time, nor is this the last time when the authenticity and credibility of a report is being questioned. In the past also, Apparel Online had dug deep into these reports and even presented viewpoints of companies mentioned in the report. More often than not, these companies refute the allegations made and claim that their side of the story is not presented, some even altogether reject the methodology used to collect the data. Readers may recall that in March 2016, the report‘ Unfree and Unfair’ released by the India Committee of the Netherlands( ICN), an independent NGO, made some serious allegations against India’ s top exporters in Bangalore that run hostel facilities for their workers. The report claimed that the garment workers still face serious issues like poor living conditions and restricted freedom of movement despite commitments from big brands to address these problems. Apparel Online was unconvinced about the findings of the report and contacted the companies mentioned for direct clarification. As expected the feedback was of disbelief and anger against the intention of the report, an indication of how NGOs are systematically ruining the reputation of exporters and the country in particular. What was most disturbing and is true for almost all reports that are released by
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ESSENTIALS
Multi-stakeholder initiatives – involving different stakeholders from the garment industry, such as brands and NGOs, including the Ethical Trading Initiative, the Fair Labor Association, and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition – should play an important role in moving the industry toward basic transparency. The factories too need to be involved. Blaming each other, helps no one!
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‘ Watch Groups’ is that the report was based mostly on desk research, hearsay and interviews with some migrant workers working in the named factories. The number of workers interviewed were also too few per company to justify a generic statement of non-compliance; and most importantly, the companies; were not contacted for their feedback …; both factors raise doubt on the‘ real’ intention of the report.
The WRC report hits directly at India’ s largest exporter …
The various reports released in the last one year are no different, the most talked about report being
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