How were the GAIA principles developed?

23. How were the principles developed? Who was involved?  

ETI engaged with representatives from 93 companies and organisations, including: 

• workers, supervisors, managers from producers/growers
• trade unions,global union federation (International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations (IUF)), and International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)
• suppliers (those that directly supply to retailers (supermarkets) and often import from producers/pack houses in sourcing/growing regions)
• retailers and brands
• producer associations
• multi-stakeholder initiatives
• NGOs
• consultancies
• academic researchers
• certification bodies
• international specialised agencies
• government  

Although we know the risk of GBVH to be widespread and prevalent in many contexts, we initially agreed a sample of two supply chains with our ETI members to ground conversations: South African citrus, Kenyan tea and flower supply chains as they were important and strategic to members, and their experience addressing GBVH would enrich the development of principles. We identified stakeholders based on our own existing networks and those of the working group and advisory group comprised of representatives from ETI member companies, NGOs and trade unions as well as academics and ETI member supply chain partners.

In a first round of workshop and engagements, we interrogated the root causes of GBVH and the need for principles and their content. We built on the vast experience of the collective contributors, discussed what had and hadn’t worked, drew in lessons from several other initiatives to ensure we were building on good practice. We developed a draft set of principles based the content of these discussions, additional bilateral engagement and with input from our advisory group.   

This set of principles was then shared with all participants from the first round of workshops. Participants provided feedback which informed discussions in a second round of workshops and additional focus group discussions and bilateral conversations. The finalisation of the principles was achieved with support from the advisory group, comprised of representatives from retailers, suppliers, academics, NGOs. rt from the advisory group, comprised of representatives from retailers, suppliers, academics, NGOs. 

For more information see the GAIA principles briefing note and our initiative webpage.

24. How did ETI engage with relevant workers and survivors throughout the development of the principles? What safeguarding measures were in place? 

Addressing GBVH in highlights the importance of businesses engaging meaningfully with stakeholders, specifically with victims and survivors and those who represent and/or work with them. Approaching GBVH prevention and response through collaboration with experts and those responsible for implementation enables us to anticipate and address challenges in putting interventions into practice.  

ETI (including our team of locally based facilitators in Kenya and South Africa) opted to invite organisations that worked with survivors and workers on GBVH and related topics, and workers’ representatives, generally, trade unions, to workshops given that these were planned off-site in central areas and online.  

Where we had the opportunity to visit producers and growers on-site, we conducted separate focus group discussions with workers and worker representatives. We were aware that given the high rates of GBVH, it is likely that workers will have witnessed, heard or experienced GBVH. We did not seek to ask any worker to disclose that they had experienced GBVH but did have procedures in place to ensure that workers could be referred on to specialist support if they indicated any upset or wish to do so.  

All online workshop participants were reminded of resources to which they could self-refer should they have required specialist thematic support.  

At no point during any workshop, focus group discussions or individual conversation did we ask stakeholders to disclose or discuss any instance of GBVH and sought to clearly set out the purpose of each engagement as part of the GAIA principle development process.  

ETI shared a draft set of principles with individuals which attended workshops and facilitators returned to sites that hosted workshops in South Africa and followed up with the principles to gather feedback.