ETI Annual review 2005/2006 – The power of partnership

Joint action to support trade union rights

One of the great strengths of our alliance is the weight we can bring to bear to resolve complaints brought to us from trade unions and NGOs in sourcing countries. By brokering negotiations between member companies, factory management and trade unions, we have helped resolve major breaches of trade union rights in several factories. These are two examples from this year.

Building a coalition to protect union rights:

Fortune Garments, Cambodia

In November 2005 we were alerted to allegations of serious interference with trade union rights at this Cambodian factory. In response, we brought member companies sourcing from Fortune Garments to meet with workers, intermediary suppliers, factory management and International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers’ Federation affiliates to verify the allegations and to seek a solution to the crisis. In May 2006, months of hard work put in by our members, their intermediary suppliers and ITGLWF affiliates in Cambodia – not to mention the workers and management at Fortune Garments – resulted in an agreement by management to:

• compensate two workers who had been unfairly dismissed
• open its doors to the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union
• train all managers in human resources
• seek support from the International Labour Organisation and other expert bodies
• accept all trade union demands over pay and conditions.

Find out more about ETI’s code violations procedure and our members’ experience of using it at:

• www.ethicaltrade.org/d/codeviolation

 

Helping promote mature industrial relations:

Interstoff Clothing Ltd. Bangladesh

In December 2005 the Interstoff Clothing Ltd. Worker Union and the Bangladesh Independent Garment Workers’ Union Federation (BIGUF) asked us to help resolve their grievances with the Interstoff factory management. This centred around the dismissal and harassment of trade union officials and members. After several months of negotiation brokered by ETI, the Interstoff Clothing Ltd. Worker Union and factory management signed an agreement to work together to create a mature system of industrial relations at Interstoff, including:

• training of managers and supervisors in trade union rights
• re-instatement of four dismissed union leaders
• re-writing of company rules, including a disciplinary procedure
• agreement to reinforce the company’s human resources department.