Humanising the global supply chain: building a decent work environment in the readymade garments supply industry in Bangladesh

Abstract

This chapter delves into the initiatives to build a ‘decent work’ environment within the supply industry, using the Bangladesh RMG industry as a case study. It postulates that the government, employers and global buyers/retailers lack a sustained commitment to build a supportive environment to safeguard workers’ wellbeing. The related legislation in this regard is far from exhaustive. The employers in this industry consider their workers as a ‘fixed cost’, whereas the governmental agencies which protect workers’ rights are either corrupt, inefficient or inadequate. The chapter ponders upon the immediate need for this industry to institutionalize certain mechanisms to create active sociopolitical dimensions in labour administration. In this regard the labour relation regulation for the RMG industry may espouse the ‘new governance’ approach in labour relations, which is backed by the rulemaking power of the government. This approach exhorts the key stakeholders to rely on each other and work together on strategies designed to reach a common goal. Incorporating such approach in the labour relations of the global supply industries in developing countries can progress the creation of a ‘decent work’ environment through raising trust among the stakeholders, securing a sustained commitment of the principal actors and also creating sociopolitical facets in labour relations.