Why a Community of Practice is required

As the world marks Human Rights Day and concludes the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, the need for rights-based, collaborative approaches to protect workers in global supply chains is more urgent than ever. The global apparel and textile (A&T) sector faces numerous systemic challenges, and many brands increasingly recognise gender-based violence and harassment (GBVH) as one of the most pervasive and critical human rights risks for women workers.

Against this backdrop, ETI’s  18-month Gender Responsive Action Community (GRACE) programme, established a community of practice with eight brands in the A&T sector, aiming to share good practice and support them and their suppliers in improving policies, processes, and practices to prevent and address GBVH in their supply chains.

It provided GRACE members with a structure to address and prevent GBVH within their supply chains, with an emphasis on motivating and supporting suppliers to adopt GBVH policies, gender-responsive grievance mechanisms and anonymous GBVH complaint mechanisms...

Beyond providing a safe and neutral space for mutual learning and co-creating solutions, the Community of Practice was grounded in gender-responsive human rights due diligence (GRHRDD) and the comprehensive approach outlined in ILO Violence and Harassment Convention No. 190 (C190). This framework emphasises GBVH risk prevention and the active involvement of all relevant stakeholders, including workers and trade unions. It provided GRACE members with a structure to address and prevent GBVH within their supply chains, with an emphasis on motivating and supporting suppliers to adopt GBVH policies, gender-responsive grievance mechanisms and anonymous GBVH complaint mechanisms, and by implementing gender-responsive risk assessments aimed at preventing GBVH and advancing a transformative approach. 

Understanding GBVH as both a human rights and business risk

As workers worldwide face the polycrisis of growing economic inequality, climate change, geopolitical instability, digital and technological disruption and regression on social policies and human rights, women continue to bear the brunt through multiple abuses, low wages and the undervaluing of their work in A&T supply chains. 

This framework has helped to identify GBVH as both a business and human rights risk. This recognises the importance of going beyond compliance, ensuring it is not just a tick-box exercise, but a genuine attempt to address structural and systemic issues and foster transformational change. It has enabled discussions about the impact of gender power inequalities in the world of work and offers an opportunity to redefine power in these challenging and uncertain geopolitical times. As workers worldwide face the polycrisis of growing economic inequality, climate change, geopolitical instability, digital and technological disruption and regression on social policies and human rights, women continue to bear the brunt through multiple abuses, low wages and the undervaluing of their work in A&T supply chains. 

A changing context: Resistance and the need for accountability

At the same time, unequal power and structural inequalities, anti-DEI rhetoric, resistance and pushback on gender equality make actions on gender equality, including anti-GBVH strategies, all the more urgent. This means having positive, accountable leadership that challenges victim-blaming cultures and notions of power as aggression, violence, dominance and force, recognising that behaviours such as verbally abusing or shouting at someone to work faster often have the opposite effect. It also means challenging cultures of impunity that do not hold perpetrators accountable and permit systematic and widespread sexual harassment and abuse. 

Shared responsibility for a more resilient and equitable future

This compels us to address some fundamental questions about the role of socially responsible business and how we can ensure a shared vision of an equitable, resilient, and sustainable future. The business benefits are not just about competitive leverage; they also include considering the role of business in promoting fundamental rights at work and shared social responsibility, along with other stakeholders, to achieve social impact on gender equality, for example, in ensuring the SDGs remain an essential guiding force for business and emphasising the centrality of GBVH prevention in GRHRDD.

Tomorrow, read Jane’s post about how companies have benefited from the GRACE project.