Originally posted in The Daily Star on 1 September 2021
A new International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry was formed in Amsterdam on August 25 with a view to improving workers’ rights and health in different countries, including Bangladesh. The two-year agreement comes into effect from today. However, the new platform has generated a heated debate among industry leaders, unions and independent experts. Refayet Ullah Mirdha, senior staff reporter at The Daily Star, talked to them. The following are excerpts from interviews on the development.
Khondaker Golam Moazzem, research director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), said formation of this separate international accord platform was not needed.
The international accord has been formed mainly targeting protection of workers’ rights like freedom of association and health safety in the garment sector worldwide, including Bangladesh, he said.
The two issues could have been incorporated in the existing RMG Sustainability Council (RSC) as it is a tripartite platform comprising brands, unions and industry, he said.
Moazzem said he discourages such new platforms from becoming active in the country, as the RSC was already functioning here.
“We discourage the formation of the new platform as the RSC is in place. Since the union leaders are also involved in the RSC, they also need to be consulted over the formation of the international accord,” he said. He also said the brands and retailers were already functional in Bangladesh as they were signatories to the RSC.
Moreover, the international accord needs to involve related ministries of the government, particularly the labour ministry, for its implementation, he said.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) were also needed to be involved in the formation of the international accord, he said.
International Labour Organization was also needed to be involved in the formation and functioning of the international accord, he said.
The previous accord has carried out a lot of visible works in Bangladesh over the last eight years, Moazzem said, adding that it was expected for such activities to equally materialise in countries where the accord had not come about so far.
“I want to see visible initiatives of the international accord in other countries as well. The new accord must not be Bangladesh centric. We want equal visibility of international accord in other countries,” he said.