Last night, BBC One’s Panorama took viewers to garment factories in Dhaka, Bangladesh in a special investigation into the chronic workers’ rights issues that plague this sector.
In 'Dying for a Bargain', we saw the rubble where Rana Plaza once stood and the charred remains of Tazreen Fashions factory, where a fire broke out late last year. We heard from workers and families devastated by these industrial tragedies, driving home the cost of poor factory safety standards when coupled with a lack of respect for workers’ rights.
We applaud Panorama for taking the camera to these uncomfortable places, as these are stories that need to be told. ETI supports considered and balanced journalistic efforts to raise awareness of working conditions and practices within Bangladesh’s garment industry and in other sectors around the world. It’s for this reason our Director, Peter McAllister, took part in the programme.
‘Dying for a Bargain’ also turned the lens on working hours, with secret filming exposing a number of instances of alleged excessive working hours. We saw shocking footage of workers emerging from an exhausting 19 hour shift, only to find they had been locked inside the factory whilst the guard took a break.
On the issue of working hours, Peter McAllister said: “Working hours in Bangladesh is a real problem…there are places where this is being tackled and good practice. But we know that it’s not only a widespread problem, it’s a problem that auditors are struggling to pick up.”
Panorama found instances where factories were not complying with codes of conduct; factories supplying both ETI members and non-members alike. When asked about the importance of codes of conduct, Peter replied: “How they are applied is key”, and went on to say that they are sometimes adopted as “a PR vehicle – or you can take them seriously. Now we know many companies that take this very seriously, share with us their findings of problems and then put in place remediation and change.”
‘Dying for a Bargain’ provided a timely reminder of the challenges facing Bangladesh’s garment sector, but also the opportunity for change. Peter McAllister’s closing quote summarises ETI’s stance, which we have echoed throughout all our media interviews about Bangladesh. “If you look at it from the sense of who has got responsibility to fix it, it’s got to be the Bangladesh government, Bangladesh industry and it’s got to be the retail sector and international brands.”