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On 6 March 2019, the first major conference of the multistakeholder initiative - Tamil Nadu (MSI-TN), which is supported from Germany by some members of the Textile Alliance as part of an alliance initiative, took place in Coimbature. Around 130 representatives from the government of Tamil Nadu, business associations, trade unions and NGOs took part. They came from Germany: Representatives of BMZ, Hugo Boss, Brands Fashion, FEMNET and the Alliance Secretariat of the Textile Alliance. The theme of the conference was: Better Compliance – Better Competitiveness. The question was whether compliance with social and environmental standards would lead to a higher competitiveness of spinning mills, as the German representatives argued, both on the economic side and on the part of FEMNET. A paper on the topic was also prepared by the MSI-TN. The participants discussed the topic vividly in mixed groups and each group developed recommendations.

Further information on the website of the Textile Alliance

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© charles deluvio - unsplash.com

Civil society has long called for more sustainability and the Council and the administration are also clearly positioning themselves: Stuttgart wants to play a special pioneering role in improving global living and working conditions through public procurement. The city no longer wanted to remain ‘at the groin’ and consciously use the considerable purchasing power of municipalities to strengthen fair production conditions and the supply of fair products. FEMNET accompanied the municipality in the successful pilot project for the procurement of sustainable work and safety shoes.

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© charles deluvio - unsplash.com

Civil society has long called for more sustainability and the Council and the administration are also clearly positioning themselves: Stuttgart wants to play a special pioneering role in improving global living and working conditions through public procurement. The city no longer wanted to remain ‘at the groin’ and consciously use the considerable purchasing power of municipalities to strengthen fair production conditions and the supply of fair products. FEMNET accompanied the municipality in the successful pilot project for the procurement of sustainable work and safety shoes.

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In 2019, the International Labour Organization (ILO) celebrates its centenary. With its highest body, the International Labour Conference, the member states of the United Nations meet every year in Geneva to decide on international labour law. This year, the conference will be held from 10 to 21 June and will address the issue of violence and harassment in the workplace. So far, there are no effective regulations at the international level.

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Photo: © Saskia Wulfinghoff

Since 7 March 2019, thousands of textile workers have been on strike in Ethiopia's largest textile park, Hawassa. The unorganized workers (trade unions are banned in Hawassa Park) demand higher wages, safe working conditions and a stop to sexual violence in the workplace.

The textile park with 52 factory halls has been made available by the Ethiopian government to foreign inverters since June 2017. Companies such as H&M and PVH (Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger), but also producers from India, China, Sri Lanka and other countries have low wages produced there. The park is one of five parks, with a total of 30 industrial parks planned by the government by 2015. Currently, export revenue from clothing production from all industrial parks in Ethiopia is $145 million.

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The future multipliers for fair public procurement. © FEMNET

The important market power of the public sector is increasingly becoming the focus of public attention: In NRW alone, public authorities and municipalities consume for around €50 billion per year. Other municipalities want to make sure that the products they buy are not produced under inhumane conditions. In order to accompany them in the individual steps, FEMNET has Education and training of multipliers Continued this year as well.

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After Months of wrestling and several times Postponement of the decision The Supreme Court finally reached an agreement on the Accord in Bangladesh on 19 May 2019: The agreement on building safety and fire protection guarantees continued work for 281 days.

In addition, the agreement includes the establishment of a national safety committee, which will take over the activities of the Accord, as well as all its infrastructure and staff after that deadline. It is an agreement between the Accord Steering Committee and the BGMEA (Employers' Association of the Bangladeshi Clothing Industry) and is endorsed by the Bangladeshi government.

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The FEMNET project consultants Marijke Mulder and Anni Korts-Laur at the fair stand at Fair Handel Stuttgart. Photo: © FEMNETThe FEMNET project consultants Marijke Mulder and Anni Korts-Laur at the fair stand at Fair Handel Stuttgart. Photo: © FEMNETThe Fair Handel trade fair took place in Stuttgart from 25 to 28 April 2019. FEMNET was present on site to present the first results of the current studies on working conditions in the workwear industry in Tunisia and India.

Marijke Mulder, FEMNET Project Officer, presented the results during the panel discussion ’The fashion revolution. Opportunities and challenges in textile production”, including SethuLakshmy Chakkenchath, a member of the Fairtrade Producers Network NAPP (the Network of Asia and Pacific Producers), Rapha Breyer from TransFair e.V. and Deniz Köksal from Reutlingen University, who presented his research results from Vietnam and Indonesia.

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A violent scene in the middle of Bonn's city centre: Again and again the overseer raises his hand against the seamstress and leaves a blue handprint on her white clothes with every symbolic hitting, pinching, holding. Exhausted, her head sinks to the table. “Faster! There is no pause now! Back to work!" On the occasion of the Rana Plaza Memorial Day, Bonn activists drew attention to the problematic working conditions in the fashion industry with an action theatre on 24 April 2019.

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Mother who lost her daughter in the collapse of the Rana Plaza building. Photo: © FEMNETMother who lost her daughter in the collapse of the Rana Plaza building. Photo: © FEMNETBonn. Exactly six years ago, 1,134 seamstresses died in the rubble of a factory building in Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh. More than 1,800 people were injured. In the ‘Rana Plaza’ building, five textile factories were producing, many for large fashion companies, whose products are also hanging in our wardrobes.

After the disaster, the entire fashion industry declared ‘Never again Rana Plaza!’. But what is the situation today? Six years after the terrible catastrophe, repression and poverty wages dominate Bangladesh's garment industry. Progress in making factories safe is under threat.

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Also in Tunisia, a lot of clothing is produced, fashion as well as workwear. A large proportion of exports go to Europe. Photo © FEMNETAlso in Tunisia, a lot of clothing is produced, fashion as well as workwear. A large proportion of exports go to Europe. Photo © FEMNET

Background: Study on workwear

FEMNET wants to find out what the working conditions in the production of workwear look like. In order to convince local buyers and decision-makers in public administrations even more successfully how useful it is to switch to sustainable procurement procedures, FEMNET is preparing a study on the working conditions in the production of workwear in cooperation with partner organisations in India and Tunisia.

Our research revealed that information specifically on workwear is to a large extent outdated and only very scattered - a large part of the studies available today focus on fashion. We know from experience reports that in practice there are usually similar problems as in fashion production. Nevertheless, the sectors are structured differently and there are other requirements for the final products.

Part of the preparations were study trips, during which the FEMNET employees Anni Korts-Laur, responsible for the coordination of the study and Katharina Edinger, responsible for later communication measures, got to know the project partners in order to ensure the safe and exact implementation of our transnational study together. In the first part of our travel reports, they share their impressions of their stay in Tunisia in October 2018. Anni-Korts-Laur will report on her study trip to India in December 2018 in the second part shortly.

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according logoSince November 2018, the decision of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh has been repeatedly postponed at monthly intervals. So also on 15 April 2019. Supposedly, it is now to be decided on May 19 whether the Accord, the building and fire protection agreement that has provided for around 1600 safe export factories, can remain in the country.

The government wants to get rid of the independent inspectors and claims to be able to carry out the factory inspections itself. However, this is questioned by both international buyers and the Clean Clothes Campaign.

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