Ten years after the worst industrial accident in the garment industry’s history, labor leaders say much has been done to improve conditions. But much more remains to be done.
“We are not dying [by the] hundreds like 2013,” said Kalpona Akter, an activist and labor organizer from Bangladesh. “We still have a long way to go.”
On April 24, 2013, garment workers in the Rana Plaza building in Dhaka, Bangladesh, noticed cracks in the building’s walls. Under pressure to fill orders for hundreds of clothing retailers, supervisors said there was no reason to worry and to get to work.
More than 1,130 garment workers were killed when Rana Plaza collapsed later that day. Another 2,500 were injured.
After the tragedy, some workers said they only reported for work because they were told they wouldn’t be paid otherwise. Others reported being threatened with physical violence. Some said they were beaten.
It was a turning point in an industry with a questionable safety record.
Outrage over the disaster fueled riots and brought international attention to the safety issues plaguing garment workers in Bangladesh. This provided workers the confidence to begin speaking out and organizing.
Akter, who worked as a child laborer in the ready-made garment factories, said workers had been complaining about problems at Rana Plaza for at least two years.
Agreements Protect Workers
The disaster led to reforms and an agreement that called for regular inspections and reports on workplace safety and required remediation of shortcomings. The Bangladesh Accord established a safety committee, safety training, and a mechanism for workers to complain. It also protected workers’ right to refuse unsafe work.Retailers and garment merchants from the United States primarily led the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety. It set and enforced safety standards for the ready-made garment industry. Alliance members committed to doing business with companies that met those standards. Companies that didn’t were blacklisted.
Fashion Is More Regulated
He pointed out that in the past, most corporations focused solely on getting the best deal. They weren’t held responsible for their supplier’s working conditions.But as consumers become more aware of labor conditions in other countries, corporations become more mindful of the impression they are making with their customers.
“Fashion is becoming a regulated industry,” Bride said.
Up to 1,600 factories were inspected under the agreements. More than 90 percent of faults had been corrected, with 428 factories reporting 100 percent corrected and 178 factories being blacklisted.
US Must Take Clear, Bold Action
Kelly Fay Rodriguez, the U.S. State Department’s special representative for International Labor Affairs, said government officials have been hostile to union organizers and others who stand for workers’ rights.She said the council couldn’t be left to do its work without oversight.
“Unless we take clear and bold action to show the world the value of workers, the underlying conditions that allowed the Rana Plaza collapse will continue,” she said.
Rodriguez said that it’s essential that the United States continue to support the freedom of association for workers. Many politicians have a financial stake in the factories, so they work to keep unions out of their shops.
She said that in response to worker protests for higher wages in 2019, many union leaders were blacklisted.
‘Radical Change’ Necessary
After Rana Plaza, the garment workers’ union, IndustriALL, and retail workers’ union, UniGlobal Union, joined more than 190 clothing brands and retailers and four witnesses as signatories on the accord.Businesses from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Global NGOs and Trade Unions, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the United States are all signatories to the agreements.
Although the agreements brought about positive changes, Scott Nova, executive director of the Workers Rights Consortium, said one thing is clear: “The fundamental lesson of Rana Plaza is that global corporations will not regulate themselves.”
He acknowledged that the movement has spread with similar agreements reported in other countries, such as Pakistan, India, Honduras, and Mexico. But Nova pointed out that workers still face hostile governments financed by factory owners in those countries and elsewhere.
According to Nova, there is a gap between the changes needed and the agencies that can and should enforce them. Nova said that the gap could only be filled by strong regulation.
“If we do that, we’ll see the kind of radical change that’s necessary,” he said.