Accra, Ghana To Host Historic World Youth Summit Act IV 2020

© Fashion Revolution

The role of unions, freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining

“The right to organise with others to fight for better working conditions is a universal human right: Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his/her interests.” This is a fundamental condition set out by the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Article 23.4. [1]

According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), the right of workers and employers to form and join organisations of their own choosing is an integral part of a free and open society. Freedom of association means that any person is free to join with other people, for example, as a trade union, to defend their rights. Freedom of association is a fundamental human right enshrined in the constitutions and laws of many countries all over the world. [2]

The ILO plays an important role globally in promoting and upholding workers’ right to freely associate and form and join trade unions. The ILO’s Committee on Freedom of Association was set up in 1951 to examine violations of workers’ and employers’ organising rights. The committee is tripartite and handles complaints in ILO Member States related to violations of freedom of association. [2]

What is collective bargaining?

In 2008, the European Court of Human Rights for the first time recognised the right to collective bargaining as an essential element of the right to form and join trade unions as protected by Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Collective bargaining is crucial for ensuring fair wages and good working conditions in the global fashion industry. The ILO defines collective bargaining as: “a process of negotiation between the representatives of an employer (or employers) and of workers. The intention of these negotiations is to arrive at a collective agreement that will govern the employment relationship. This typically covers issues such as wages, working time, and other working conditions. Since collective agreements also regulate labour relations they are likely to address the rights and responsibilities of the respective parties. Collective bargaining is premised on a well defined employment relationship and the freedom of workers and employers to associate to an organisation that represents their interests. It is a means to address work-related issues in a way that accommodates the interests of all parties concerned. Collective bargaining involves a process of joint decision making and is thus distinct from other forms of governance such as government regulation, individual contracts and/or the unilateral decisions of employers.” [3]

Imagine something was happening in your workplace that you thought was unfair or perhaps you feel like your company is taking advantage of you or discriminating against you. Now imagine if other people at your workplace felt the same as you. In response, all of you decide to join forces in order to bring up your concerns to your manager and push for the company to come to an agreement with you to change the situation. This is essentially what collective bargaining is all about. When done formally, it typically means you would join or form a trade union that represents employees in negotiations with your employers. It means that you have a collective voice at work that represents your best interests.

Source: ACT

Unionisation in the global garment supply chain

However, according to campaign group Labour Behind the Label, only a very small percentage of all garment workers worldwide are unionised and have access to collective bargaining processes. Furthermore, even when unions do exist, they have often been set up by factory managers rather than independently and democratically formed by workers themselves. [4]

Garment workers are routinely denied freedom of association rights

Although workers worldwide are promised the fundamental right to freedom of association, in reality, millions of workers are prevented from forming or joining unions through various means. This may include the government denying union registration, imposing onerous legal restrictions or police falsely arresting organisers and repressing strikes. Tactics such as intimidation, abuse, violence and even sometimes murder are used by governments, factory owners or hired hooligans against workers who try to form and join trade unions or organise public protests.

Between December 2018 and January 2019 a massive wave of protests swept across Bangladesh’s garment industry when workers demanded an increase in the minimum wage. The government sought to repress the strikes by arresting protesters, whilst employers in more than a hundred factories fired protesting workers. According to an estimate provided by the IndustriALL Bangladesh Council (IBC), the national coordinating body of IndustriALL Global Union, over 11,600 workers lost their jobs as a result. 70 workers were arrested, one person was killed and many were injured in the protests. [5]

China has some of the strongest labour rights legislation in the world. China’s Trade Union Law provides all workers access to freedom of association, collective bargaining rights and to democratically elect worker representatives. However, when it comes to implementation and enforcement, it’s a very different story. There is actually only one recognised and sanctioned union in China, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU). The union is part of the Chinese governmental structure. Assembling outside the ACFTU framework is against the law. When workers interests conflict with the government’s policies and priorities, then workers are ignored. What this means, in reality, is that Chinese garment workers do not have freedom of association and independent collective bargaining rights. This doesn’t mean that all factories in China are exploitative. Some factories will still choose to sign a collective bargaining agreement, provide space for the union to operate independently and allow elected union representatives. [6]

Union busting and violent suppression of union activity has had a long history in the garment sector across Central America, particularly in dangerous societies such as Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. And even in the U.S. trade unions have been decimated since the 1980s as the country has moved towards a less regulated version of capitalism. Today, the percentage of workers who are members of unions in the U.S. is just over 10%, about half of what it was at the start of the 1980s. It’s sad to think that the once strong International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU) no longer exists. It was once one of the largest and most crucial trade unions in the country and was responsible for ushering in comprehensive safety and workers’ compensation laws that citizens across the U.S. benefit from today. [7]

Research shows that trade unions are actually good for business

Despite this, research conducted many decades ago by Harvard economists Richard Freeman and James Medoff showed that unions are good for business and society, contrary to popular political rhetoric at the time. They found that unions are associated with lower employee turnover, improvements in workplace practices, increased productivity and efficiency, strong health and safety, better retention of skills and reduced wage inequality in companies. [8] More recently in the UK, research undertaken on behalf of the Trade Union Congress found similar benefits to business: fewer injuries, less time off, fewer compensation payments, less money spent on recruiting and training, which all means money saved for companies. [9]

What are fashion companies doing to support freedom of association?

Some major fashion brands are taking steps to better ensure workers’ rights to freely associate, join trade unions and collectively bargain are upheld. ASOS, Esprit, H&M, Inditex (who owns brands such as Zara and Pull & Bear), Mizuno, and Tchibo have each signed a Global Framework Agreement with IndustriALL Global Union, the world’s largest global trade union representing clothing, textile and footwear industry workers. Global Framework Agreements are negotiated on a global level between trade unions and a multinational company. They establish a framework for protecting and strengthening the rights of garment workers making their products in countries around the world. [10]

In the garment sector, IndustriALL Global Union has also recently set up the Action, Collaboration and Transformation (ACT) initiative to bring together trade unions and major fashion brands and retailers to negotiate and agree higher wages, fairer prices and better working conditions for the whole sector within a country. Collective bargaining at an industry level means that workers within a country can negotiate their wages under the same conditions, regardless of the factory they work in or the retailers and brands they produce for. Linking it to brands’ purchasing practices, it means that payment of the negotiated wage is supported and enabled by the price brands pay for the products they order from their suppliers. The long-term goal is to achieve living wages in the garment, textiles and footwear sectors. The initiative is still in the early stages, and we will see how this unique approach develops. [11]

Without the ability for all workers to have true representation, a collective voice and bargaining power, we are unlikely to see transformative and positive change in the global fashion industry. Workers need to be enabled to negotiate better wages and working conditions for themselves. Without that, we will only ever see small, incremental change and the risk of factory accidents like the Rana Plaza collapse will remain a reality.

---

References

1. United Nations. Universal Declaration of Human Rights [Internet]. Paris; 1948. Available from: https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/
2. ILO. Freedom of association [Internet]. 2019 [cited 2019 May 1]. Available from: https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/freedom-of-association-and-the-right-to-collective-bargaining/lang--en/index.htm
3. Hayter S. NEGOTIATING FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE. In: The Role of Collective Bargaining in the Global Economy: Negotiating for Social Justice. ILO; 2011 [cited 2019 May 1]. p. 1–17. Available from: https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---dcomm/---publ/documents/article/wcms_173298.pdf
4. Labour Behind the Label. Trade Unions [Internet]. 2019. [cited 2019 May 1]. Available from: http://labourbehindthelabel.org/our-work/trade-unions/
5. IndustriALL.Over 11,600 Bangladesh garment workers lose jobs and face repression. [Internet]. 2019. [cited 2019 May 1]. Available from: http://www.industriall-union.org/over-11600-bangladesh-garment-workers-lose-jobs-and-face-repression
6. Verite. Assessing Freedom of Association & Worker Participation Standards in Chinese Factories [Internet]. 2019. [cited 2019 May 1]. Available from: https://www.verite.org/assessing-freedom-association-worker-participation-standards-chinese-factories/
7. Wikipedia. International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union [Internet]. 2019. [cited 2019 May 1]. Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Ladies%27_Garment_Workers%27_Union
8. Reed TF. Book Reviews: What Do Unions Do? Eur Sociol Rev [Internet]. 1987;3(2):174–5. Available from: https://academic.oup.com/esr/article-abstract/3/2/174/475740?redirectedFrom=PDF
9. Wilkinson A. Do the maths, employers: strong unions are good for business. The Guardian [Internet]. 2017 Mar 15; Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/mar/15/employers-strong-unions-good-for-business-taxpayers-alliance
10. IndustriALL. Global Framework Agreements [Internet]. 2019. [cited 2019 May 1]. Available from: http://www.industriall-union.org/global-framework-agreements
11. Action on Living Wages. Fact Sheet. [Internet]. 2019. [cited 2019 May 1]. Available from: https://actonlivingwages.com/fact-sheet/

© Fashion Revolution @gabidezin.blogspot.com  #FutureLearn