Don’t get me wrong, I love to shop. If you ask any of my roommates, they would probably tell you that I have a shopping problem. And yet, we often forget what it takes to get clothes into our stores here in Canada. What you mostly hear in the news about garment factory conditions is typically child labor or extremely low wage rates. You don’t typically hear about building and fire safety; until an accident happens.
In April 2013, the Rana Plaza garment factory complex collapsed in the Savar district of Bangladesh. It is said to be the worst incident in the garment industry thus far, with a death toll of more than 1,100 workers and injuring thousands more. Although many smaller incidents have occurred since the growth of this industry, the Rana Plaza accident had propelled the industry under the scrutiny of the international stage.
This past summer I had the opportunity to partake in a field research course with the University of Ottawa in Bangladesh studying their post-conflict development. The garment industry has served as one of the main economic drivers in Asia over the past couple decades. If you look on any of your clothing labels, chances are that 1 in 5 times that piece of clothing will be made from a country in Asia. My group and I had chosen to focus our research on the booming industry given how much it has contributed to the economy, as it is the second largest industry in the world following China, it serves as the largest sector for female employment in Bangladesh, and due to the most recent factory incidents.
The Rana Plaza accident may have especially held an impact here in Canada as Joe Fresh, a retail division from Loblaw Co., was using this factory to manufacture their clothes.
A number of issues have been highlighted due to the tragedy in 2013. A process called subcontracting has been at the forefront of the main problems that still need to be addressed. Factories often become pressed for time when an order is due or when production of the clothes has stalled due to increased orders, owners of these factories tend to have the clothes or parts of the clothes made in other, smaller factories. These factories are not registered with the government and thus avoid any form of inspection or accountability. Although many retailers have policies against subcontracting, garment factory owners often will not tell retailers they have subcontracted their orders in fear of losing their business. The subcontracted factories can be found in any available space, mainly in empty floors of other residential or commercial buildings. By loading in heavy machinery and numerous workers, the safety of every individual in the building is placed in jeopardy.
This tragedy has allowed for unprecedented change in the industry. Many retailers around the world have signed on to The Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety, a legally binding accord that ensures fire and building safety inspections are carried out. Hundreds of factories throughout Bangladesh have been subjected to safety inspections, workers are now able to form unions and increase monthly wage rates.
Despite the improvements that have been made, there are leaps and bounds to go in order to improve the conditions of the garment industry.
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1, author’s own