Bangladesh Safety Accord
Briefing by
Judy Gearhart
Executive Director, ILRF
June 4, 2013
How Accord was achieved…
Global labor advocate networks linking
brands/retailers to factories in recent disasters
 Focusing attention on individual brand
responsibility, failure of industry CSR programs,
small cost of saving lives
 Broad support – Bangladesh unions, US and
European unions, NGOs, online campaigners,
student activists
 Key players: NGOs and unions in Bangladesh,
Europe, US and Canada

The Accord: Unprecedented
Commitments
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Thorough, independent inspections with full public
reports
Brands/retailers must require factories to undergo
all necessary renovations and help with financing
Brands/retailers must cease business with any
factory that refuses (*through a guided process)
Brands/retailers must make 2-year commitment to
safe factories
Central role for workers and unions: union access,
OHS committees, right to refuse dangerous work
All commitments binding and enforceable
Implementation
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Implementation plan in 45 days
Brands/Unions/NGOs convened in
Geneva on May 23
12-member planning committee
focused on swift implementation
First priority: inspections and
renovations to mitigate most
serious widespread hazards
Signatory Brands and Retailers
41 signatory companies, from 13 countries
• H&M – largest producer in Bangladesh
• Inditex – world’s largest fashion retailer
• Carrefour – world’s 2nd largest general retailer
• Most major apparel retailers in W. Europe
• North America: PVH/A&F/Loblaw/ENYCE
Signatories represent:
• At least 1,500 factories and 1 million workers
Gaps:
• Gap, VF, Walmart, Target, JC Penney, Macy’s, Kohl’s
Conceptually: Four Parts to Program:

Agreements on the Structure of the
Program
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Rigorous Inspections and
Remediation
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Worker Involvement and
Transparency:
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Supplier Incentives
AGREEMENTS ON
THE STRUCTURE OF
THE PROGRAM
Scope of the Project:
Brands designate all suppliers to 1 of 3 groups:
Supplier
Group
Tier 1, or
Primary
Suppliers
Significance to Brand Engagement Level
Making up 30% of brand’s  Safety Inspections
production
 Remediation
 Safety training at
facility
Tier 2, major Tier 1 & 2 make up 65%  Safety Inspections
or long-term of brand’s production
 Remediation
suppliers
Tier 3, minor Occasional suppliers;
 Limited inspections
suppliers
brand orders < 10% of its  If high risk, move to
production; Make up 35%
Tier 2
of brand’s production
Governance
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Dispute Resolution (para 5):
◦ Steering Committee reviews and decides
disputes within 21 days of the petition;
◦ Appeals to that decision then move to an
arbitration process, which is to be enforceable
in a court of law of the domicile of the
signatory company
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Administration and management: to be
developed by the Steering Committee (SC
will have 3 company and 3 union signatories)
in consultation with: High-Level Tripartite
Committee of National Action Plan, MOLE,
ILO and GIZ.
Financial Support

Brands fund SC, and work of the Safety
Inspector and Training Coordinator and
their teams.
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Brands fund proportional to their
production in Bangladesh up to a max
contribution per company per year being
$500,000 for the 5 years (para 24).
CREDIBLE INSPECTIONS
AND REMEDIATION
Credible Inspections:
Inspections done according to rigorous
standards
 Required public reporting of inspection
findings and remediation plan;
 Sharing of factory lists and volume data
with the Safety Inspector (confidentially)
so they can designate suppliers according
to its Tier
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Remediation
Factories to implement corrective actions on
schedule
 Factories maintain workers’ employment
relationship and regular income for up to 6 months
in case the factory has to close for renovations;
failure to do so may result in termination of
contracts.
 Brands make reasonable effort to ensure workers
who lose employment due to loss of orders or shut
down of a factory are offered employment or
supported in their placement at a safe factory.
 Factories ensure workers can refuse work if he/she
has reasonable justification it is unsafe without
recrimination
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WORKER
INVOLVEMENT AND
TRANSPARENCY
Training:
Require factories provide access to
training teams to deliver training including
the involvement of trade unions and local
experts.
 All suppliers must have functioning health
and safety committees set up according
to law and made up of 50% workers
chosen by factory union or democratic
election
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Complaints
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Safety Inspector establishes worker
complaint process, connected to NAP
hotline.
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[Note: consider how to set up community
based support for workers’ complaints
and concerns]
Transparency and Reporting
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Public Reports on Factory Compliance and
Remediation:
◦ Written inspection reports within 2 weeks for: factory
managers, OSH committee, worker reps and SC
◦ Inspection report and factory remediation plan public
in 6 weeks.
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Aggregated list of suppliers in program, indicating
to which Tier they are designated
Quarterly aggregated reports summarizing
industry compliance and review of findings.
A protocol will ensure participating factories are
not penalized as a result of the transparency
SUPPLIER INCENTIVES
Threats and Brand Financing:
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Warning system for brands to threaten
termination of business due to lack of
participation
Brands negotiate commercial terms that ensure
it is financially feasible for factories to maintain
safe workplaces and/or use alternative means to
ensure financial capacity to comply (e.g. loans,
investments, direct funding, etc)
Brands maintain order volumes with Tier 1 and 2
factories for at least first two years of this
program, provided it’s commercially viable to do
so, and the factory continues to meet the
company’s terms.