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14 December 2019 Partnership initiative Tamil Nadu: "Everyone must take responsibility"

Mugilan P. has been coordinating the training programme at MSI-TN, the Indian partner organisation of the Tamil Nadu alliance initiative, since October 2018. In an interview with the Alliance Secretariat of the Textile Alliance, he takes stock of the first year of the initiative.

This interview appeared in Annual Report 2019 of the Alliance for Sustainable Textiles.

This year, more than 100 trainings on labour rights and complaint mechanisms were carried out. How did the training in the factories go? Have the expectations of the initiative been met?

We've done 85 percent of the training, but we haven't finished it yet. It took a lot of time and we continue to work on communicating the work of MSI-TN to factory managers. Since many stakeholders now know the MSI-TN and its goals, we were able to start all training phases from level 1 to 6. In Level 1, we explain what the MSI-TN is and what it does:

Basically, we form two bodies, an Internal Complaint Committee; ICC abbreviation] and a Works Committee [WC abbreviation]^[1]. We were able to convince the managers that we were improving both working conditions and business-relevant processes. It's a win-win situation.

Level 1 is for top management. Levels 2 and 3 are for HR managers and middle management. We train them in dealing with the two bodies and in holding elections in which employees are elected as representatives of the two bodies.

At level 4, training takes place in which the entire workforce is sensitized. At levels 5 and 6, the elected representatives of the employees in the committees are trained in the sense of capacity building. It basically takes three days. However, many factories do not allow training for three consecutive days because production must continue. We can understand this argument and develop individual solutions with the responsible managers. For the ICC training, 80 percent female and 20 percent male workers are selected. They should learn to take responsibility for banning sexual harassment from the factories. That means we need to train them to be leaders. In Indian culture, women are often oppressed, especially here in southern India's Tamil Nadu. Women must be able to take the lead and act as representatives for others. In some factories, the ICC has already been set up and the trainings have been carried out.

Have you noticed any concrete improvements?

Many workers didn't know what the ICC was or why they were on the board. Therefore, in capacity building, we teach how and for what the committees work and explain what exactly sexual harassment is. Of course, sexual acts are sexual harassment, but also, for example, sexually explicit looks. Indian men are often unaware of this. Sexual violence is not only perpetrated at work, but often at home. We promote awareness here and clarify laws and sanctions. That's a big step forward.

We also engage in discussions with participants – mostly women – to explain the reasons for complaints. We ask: ‘What do you think of kissing? What do you think of touch?’ They would not talk about it on their own, but in this context they talk about their needs and concerns. We invite you to our veranda session (ICC Capacity Building Training) where we ask: “Do you understand the problem? Why didn’t you complain to the ICC?’ The women often reply that they don’t report incidents because they are afraid of being fired.

For men, on the other hand, there are other training contents. You need to learn how to properly deal with and interact with women. Our activities are designed to prevent and prevent sexual harassment within the factories.

As a national NGO, how satisfied are you with the progress of the initiative?

I am very satisfied because we go to different factories every day and meet so many people and faces. They tell us: “When I'm in training, I'm a little relieved of stress.” That puts a smile on her face. We also provide information on labour rights that directly affect them. It is important that you know them.

Many employee representatives of the WC were familiarised with the information on social benefits; such as the Employee Provident Fund and Employee State Insurance [Abbreviation ESI]. We recommend that you register yourself and your colleagues with the ESI to receive medical services.

What have you taken with you the most so far?

I work with people. And with their feelings. Many report that they are very stressed. That's why we've already done a lot of stress-reduction activities. It must not happen that angry managers or carers insult the workers. On the contrary, the superiors should be role models for the workers. In the past, many managers thought that the workers were not worth much. Here, a change of thinking is urgently needed and everyone must perceive and respect each other as human beings. This starts by treating people equally and with respect. We appeal to their minds with the trainings, especially with the executives and personnel managers. All this goes beyond training for the committees.

What lessons from the project would they share with similar initiatives?

We can share the best practice examples from the committees. Many were unaware of the huge gap between management and workers or did not perceive it as a problem. The workers are going in one direction, the management is going in another direction. Because this has to change, for example, we are working with a role-playing game: Employees must play the role of management and vice versa. An example: The local festival Diwali is coming up and hundreds of workers want to take five days off. But production must continue. So how do you find a good solution? We let them debate and discuss. That's how they learn. Management in the role of workers asks for leave. The workers play the strict management role. In the end, they agree and say, for example: “Okay, we're going to work on Sundays and work overtime so we can get our job done and celebrate Diwali.” This is how management can relax. In this way, we get them to understand their own roles and the other side. Through activities of this kind, they understand how to take responsibility.

What are the next steps in the project?

We need to have a good relationship with the government. As soon as we have completed the trainings in the factories, we invite externals. The government is the appropriate body to participate and award a certificate. It can also encourage the ICC and WC representatives. After completing the trainings, we noticed that the workers are afraid of being controlled by management. To get rid of this, we need to involve externals, especially the government. At the very least, we can involve the Department for Social Welfare to build a better relationship between factory management, government, and MSI-TN.

What is your vision for the clothing industry in Tamil Nadu in 10 years?

In ten years there will be many ICC and WC committees. These people take responsibility. They take care of the business and also their private life. ICC and WC representatives achieve improvements for the well-being of workers and also for the economic situation of the company. If we train them properly, they can do that. This is my biggest vision.

annotations

[1] The law Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal (2013) on sexual harassment of women in the workplace, requires the existence of internal complaint mechanisms (ICC) in factories with more than ten employees where complaints can be filed. The committees should consist of at least four employees and have a share of at least 50 percent women.

In addition, they write Industrial Disputes Rules (1957) the existence of Works Committees in any factory with more than 100 employees to resolve labour law complaints. The committees should be composed of a maximum of 20 employees and representatives of the company's management, who are composed at least once every three months. In the case of fewer than 100 employees, the Industrial Disputes Act, 2010 AmendmentA Grievance Redressal Committee (GRC) is established.