Business

Bangladesh: Coalitions to inspect 1,910 garment factories

The two coalitions -- Accord and Alliance -- will inspect some 1,910 garment factories in Bangladesh aiming to improve their fire and building safety measures, the organizations have said. The Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety on October 15 published a list of about 620 factories, especially those manufacturing clothes representing an estimated 1.1 million workers. About 50 percent of factories listed by the Alliance also manufacture apparel products for the Accord members, according to the list. The coalition representing 20 North American apparel companies, retailers and brands working to improve fire and building safety in the country's garment factories released the list as part of a collective effort by the stakeholders to avoid duplication of inspection.

Shared suppliers make up approximately 50 percent of the Alliance factory list, further highlighting the need for combined efforts on behalf of garment industry workers, a statement issued by Alliance said. Earlier, on October 3, the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh - a coalition of about 100 global brands - made public a list of nearly 1,600 factories covered by the pact, employing more than two million workers. Accord leaders noted that additional data points would be disclosed as more information is gathered from signatories and that, with some companies which have joined recently still to disclose their lists, the total number of factories will grow.

Sean Ansett, the Accord's Interim Executive Director, said, "This is not merely a list of factory names. It includes crucial information on the physical structure of the factories. These data points provide an unprecedented map of the Bangladesh apparel industry covered by the Accord and are playing a key role in prioritizing factories for safety inspections." The Alliance list includes the information of factory name and address, the number of workers, whether the factory is housed in a multi-purpose or factory building. By releasing this information, the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety hopes to be taking yet another step towards partnership on coordinated trainings, inspections and remedial support, its statement added.

Achieving this will require concerted and sustained efforts to work with government, International Labour Organisation (ILO), industry, workers, factory management and the civil society. In accordance with the Alliance Member's Agreement, the full list of factories was shared with the Fair Factories Clearinghouse in September 2013. The list represents input from the majority of Alliance members. "The Alliance recognizes that this factory list is a work in progress, and will be working to validate and update details over the coming months as new members complete their internal processes for sharing factory information," the statement added.