First accident insurance for textile workers in Bangladesh Bonn. Over a decade ago, in April 2013, the devastating collapse of the Rana Plaza building occurred with over 1000 fatalities, revealing the urgent need for improved safety measures in the garment industry. Since then, significant progress has been made through the Accord safety agreement, but accidents at work remain a sad reality. Read more …
U-turn of the FDP in the EU supply chain law puts credibility of Germany at risk Berlin. In today's Bureau decision, the FDP announced its intention to stop the EU Supply Chain Act. The FDP is thus positioning itself against the compromise reached by the EU Council and the European Parliament in December 2023. Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP) had significantly shaped the negotiating position of the Federal Government and supported it until the end. Johannes Heeg, spokesperson of the civil society alliance “Initiative Supply Chain Law”, commented. Read more …
© SUE Henry Mathews Award to Dr. Gisela Burckhardt and FEMNET Annual meeting of the Association of Critical Shareholders on 14 September 2024 in Cologne discusses the Supply Chain Act. Cologne/Bonn. At the annual meeting of the Association of Critical Shareholders, experts will discuss whether the German Supply Chain Act has already had a positive effect and what expectations are associated with the European Supply Chain Act. This year, the umbrella organisation is awarding its group-critical Henry Mathews Prize to Dr. Gisela Burckhardt and the organisation FEMNET. Read more …
© Pieter van de Boogert Eleven years after Rana Plaza: Textile factories safer, triggers of the disaster remain Press release of the Clean Clothes Campaign 22.04.2024 Wednesday, April 24, 2024, marks the 11th anniversary of the worst tragedy in the fashion industry: the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Dhaka, Bangladesh, which killed 1,138 people. On this occasion, Artemisa Ljarja from the Campaign for Clean Clothes Germany draws the following conclusion: "Although unprecedented progress has been made in improving safety in factories since then, the brutal crackdown on the protests for the increase in the minimum wage shows that fashion brands producing in Bangladesh still do not ensure that basic rights are respected in their supply chains." Read more …
© FEMNET Why is your sustainability strategy lacking social aspects, Hugo Boss? Joint press release from FEMNET, the Clean Clothes Campaign and the Association of Critical Shareholders Bonn, Cologne, Berlin – On the occasion of Hugo Boss’s upcoming annual general meeting on 14 May 2024, FEMNET, the Campaign for Clean Clothes (CCC) and the umbrella organisation of Critical Shareholders criticise the unilateral sustainability strategy and question whether Hugo Boss complies with its due diligence obligations under the German Supply Chain Act. Read more …
© FEMNET FDP sabotage of the EU supply chain law is an affront to those affected by human rights violations Berlin. Federal Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) and Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) reject the compromise negotiated in Brussels on the EU supply chain law. This is the result of a statement by the two ministries, from which the dpa quotes today and which is available to the Supply Chain Act Initiative. The alliance of more than 140 civil society organisations is calling on Chancellor Olaf Scholz to use his policy competence and agree to the EU Supply Chain Act. Read more …
© Initiative Lieferkettengesetz German abstention on EU supply chain law: indictment of democracy and human rights protection Berlin. The German government will not agree to the compromise on the EU supply chain law negotiated in Brussels under pressure from the FDP and major business associations. This was announced today by Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD) to the Reuters news agency. The Supply Chain Act initiative condemns this withdrawal at the last minute. It damages Germany's reputation as a reliable political and economic partner in the EU and shows the low priority of human rights as well as climate and environmental protection for the German government. Read more …
© Laila Sieber Because of the German government: Setback for European human rights project – Majority of the population in favour of EU supply chain law according to survey Major setback for the EU Supply Chain Act: The Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Council (COREPER) today failed to reach a qualified majority in favour of the human rights project. The Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union has announced that it will now enter into negotiations again with the member states and the EU Parliament. Meanwhile, there is great support for the EU Supply Chain Act among the German population: More than two-thirds of people in Germany want the law, as a new representative survey shows. Read more …
© Initiative Lieferkettengesetz Despite German abstention: EU states vote for greatly weakened supply chain law Berlin. A greatly weakened version of the EU Supply Chain Act has cleared the central hurdle: The Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Council of the European Union (COREPER) today voted in favour of the important human rights project. This means that the directive can be adopted before the European elections in June. For weeks and until the end, the FDP had tried to bring down the law. The EU had actually already found a compromise in the trilogue procedure in December 2023. With a further compromise proposal that has been greatly undermined, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union today succeeded in securing a qualified majority of member states for the EU Supply Chain Act. FDP Justice Minister Buschmann also rejected this compromise proposal, which is why Germany abstained from the vote. Read more …
EU Supply Chain Act takes final hurdle - paradigm shift in human rights and environmental protection Berlin. In the future, large companies in the EU will have to work towards compliance with human rights and environmental standards in their supply chains. Der Rat der Europäischen Union hat die entsprechende Richtlinie, das sogenannte EU-Lieferkettengesetz, heute final beschlossen. This puts an end to months of political tug-of-war, in which the FDP in particular wanted to bring the project down on the German side. EU Member States now have two years to transpose the project into national law. The Federal Government must adapt the existing German Supply Chain Act accordingly. Read more …
Going it alone on the Supply Chain Act: Habeck stabs Greens and responsible companies in the back FEMNET Chairwoman Dr. Gisela Burckhardt comments: "With today's proposal to suspend the LkSG for two years, Habeck stabs all those who have been fighting for years for a legal regulation in the back. It unsettles companies, civil society feels fooled. This could have implications for the EU elections." Read more …
