ETI initiatives

In partnership with seven corporate members - Primark, New Look, Marks and Spencer plc, Tesco plc, J Sainsbury plc, Dimensions and Arco​ – ETI initiated a rapid Covid-19 response initiative in 20 supplier factories nominated by brands in the Dhaka area. Based on a rigorous needs assessment, ETI facilitated tablet-based Covid-19 awareness and occupational health and safety training to over 26,000 factory employees, and distributed over 47,000 safety kits. We also supported factory safety committees through the establishment of an expert supplier support network​ to encourage peer-to-peer learning across 37 suppliers, through monthly meetings which averaged 86 participants. Through regular engagement with this small sample of stakeholders, ETI was able to facilitate the spread of good practice during a turbulent time where effective and up-to-date information on occupational health and safety was critical. These resources are available in English and Bangla via ETI’s website and to tablet-based users by way of a QR code.

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Working together with nine corporate partners – John Lewis Partnership, J Sainsbury plc, Morrisons, Flamingo Horticulture, Union Hand-Roasted Coffee, Co-operative Group, Tesco plc, MM Flowers and Minor, Weir and Willis – and NGO member Partner Africa, ETI supported agriculture suppliers in Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 outbreaks. Corporate members nominated suppliers based on vulnerability criteria, and following site-specific needs assessments, each received bespoke technical assistance supported via Partner Africa and virtual learning events engaged a wider global network of stakeholders. This encompassed Covid-19 awareness training, anti-stigma messaging for almost 4,000 workers, Covid-19 outbreak control training and Standard Operating Procedures shared with over 50 farm managers and supervisors, and Covid-19 awareness raising text messages sent to 2,170 workers and smallholder farmers. To assist the development of business continuity during the pandemic, farm managers, cooperative leaders, workers and smallholder farms were also supported through different trainings, with some also given access to nutritional kitchen gardens. The positive impact of this project is evident, not only in the continued use of resources and skills developed, but also in the stories from project beneficiaries and survey results collected; the majority of participants felt more knowledgeable and 94% of workers felt safer at work.

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Faced with the seafarers’ crew change crisis in May 2020, the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) – which represents nearly 20 million transport workers in 150 countries worldwide – partnered with ETI to drive collective human rights advocacy and combat modern slavery issues inherent in logistics supply chains. Together with members, the ITF, ILO and International Maritime Organisation, ETI contributed to the UNGC guidance, Maritime Transport and the Covid-19 Crew Change Crisis and established a Logistics Expert Support Network (LESN) for members to learn more. The LESN engaged 26 corporate members, two trade unions, and two other multi-stakeholder groups.

The LESN has given participants the opportunity to benefit from much needed insight into this vital industry, its complex supply chains and its often hidden workforce. Starting with shipping, members not only formed part of the groundswell of activity driving action in response to the crew change crisis, but also participated in testing ITF’s new Seafarers Human Rights Due Diligence health check. Going forward the LESN will continue navigating various components of how goods are transported, including haulage and warehousing.                       

In 2020, ETI was invited to be a part of a consortium of global partners working on the Sustainable Textile Initiative: Together for Change (STITCH). Together, consortium members formulated a five-year programme which was formally accepted by the Dutch Ministry in December and initiated in January 2021. STITCH enables ETI to fund many of our initiatives across the apparel and textile sector, including those critical to our strategic focus on business practices, meaningful human rights due diligence, gender and social dialogue.

One example of this is The Industry We Want (TIWW), an initiative co-hosted by ETI and Fair Wear, which has established an inclusive vision for the industry. It is now developing a set of industry-wide indicators to measure annual progress towards this vision and galvanise action across social, commercial and environmental pillars. TIWW recognises that although there are considerable efforts and resources directed towards change in this sector, too often this is poorly coordinated and fails to address the underlying root causes. For example, wages in many places remain low, business practices remain unequal, union membership is limited and negative climate impacts are at an all-time high. In 2020-21, TIWW hosted 270 participants at a major event to set out a positive vision for the sector and started the process of developing its key sector-level metrics.

In recent years, we have witnessed Leicester re-emerge as a UK production centre for ultra-fast and fast fashion. This rapid growth has come at a cost, with evidence of worker abuse and exploitation discovered as far back as 2014 and exposed in Parliament in 2019. In 2020, ETI continued its work on these issues by supporting a partnership approach which saw trade unions and brands working together to bring unions into manufacturers in Leicester. Behind the scenes, we also worked to facilitate a more formal agreement between brands and unions working in this space, which we hope will come to fruition in 2022.

Since 2019, ETI has collaborated with Malaysian NGO Our Journey and UK company Fifty Eight, on a programme funded by the UK Government Home Office’s Modern Slavery Innovation Fund (MSIF). The programme set out to develop a set of principles that provide practical guidance on operational-level grievance mechanisms for migrant workers. It also aimed to support migrant workers to access remedy themselves, through the development and pilot of a worker-focused app.

2020-21 saw a lot of success for this project, from the development and launch of the Access to Remedy Principles and their own website, to the development, piloting and launch of the app in Malaysia, assisting workers from Nepal, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar and India. The JustGoodWork Malaysia app provides workers with accessible information on their rights and helps them in deciding what advice and support they need, as well as who to approach for help. Following its success, the programme has been funded for a second phase, extending the app to more Malaysian industries, to more migrant workers and to stakeholders engaging with migrant workers in their countries of origin. Additionally, ETI will be able to conduct wider promotion of the Access to Remedy Principles to companies and other stakeholders and develop further guidance.

In Bangladesh, nationwide lockdowns characterised the first quarter of 2020-21. Factories closed for more than two months, leaving millions of readymade garment workers temporarily out of work. With funding from UK Aid’s ‘Impact Grant’, NORAD and HSBC, ETI adapted its social dialogue programme to meet the needs of workers remotely during the pandemic. While factories were closed, the ETI team in Bangladesh adjusted its social dialogue training resources and methodologies to make them more appropriate for online learning once work resumed.

Through online webinars, ETI was able to deliver key programme aims, raising awareness of the importance of worker representation, dialogue and engagement. We also delivered sessions to supervisors and managers to help strengthen their approach to problem-solving, and provided support to facilitate the functional capacity of factory participation committees or trade unions to lead workplace dialogue.

Over the year the programme reached a total of 55,347 factory workers directly through training activities and awareness-raising campaigns. It is anticipated that their increased knowledge and understanding of social dialogue and collective bargaining has in turn positively impacted an anticipated 150,000 family and community members by providing a greater sense of security through a more stable labour market.

ETI also played an instrumental role in the establishment and success of sexual harassment complaints committees (SHCCs) in six factories during the year. Alongside this, ETI provided specific training on gender equality and gender relations within the workplace, to 6,740 female and 4,608 male workers. Surveys conducted across all six factories before this training found only 16% of the male and 7% of the female workers were aware that factories are required to have a SHCC under Bangladesh law. Following this training, 73% and 71% of respondents demonstrated awareness.

Human rights issues in Italian agriculture have been well documented in studies and investigative journalism over the last 10 years. ETI members and partners continue to be concerned regarding key salient risks including illegal forms of contracting and recruitment practices and poor working conditions which can amount to forced labour. In 2020, the ETI working group on Italian produce set out a plan to drive collective action for vulnerable workers. Despite the challenges for this sector and others during the period, work continued to build momentum with Italian cooperatives and processor groups. Building these relationships enabled ETI to raise awareness and share knowledge and learning with producers and their organisations on these issues, establishing a basis for collaboration and engagement with local supply chain actors. This included keeping members informed of the evolving human rights and social sustainability agendas in Italian agriculture, exploring and initiating practical collaborative processes with local suppliers and both assessing risks and disseminating awareness-raising materials on these with producer organisations in the country.

ETI has been facilitating the Tamil Nadu Multi-Stakeholder (TNMS) programme of work and working group since 2012, with the aim of socialising ethical recruitment and employment practices across the Indian state. TNMS activities were significantly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, related state-wide closures and mitigation efforts implemented in India over the financial year. Once it was clear that the pandemic would significantly hamper the team's ability to continue direct work in factories, including the Nalam training approach, adjustments were made to move activities online.

ETI worked to increase local ownership and sustainability of the Nalam programme, for example by adapting to a ‘Training of Trainers’ approach delivered to nine local organisations. These local organisations will go on to be approved trainers to mill and factory workers in the future.

2020-21 saw the phasing out of ETI’s direct delivery support to mills in Tamil Nadu. While this marks the end of a long relationship with the powerhouse of India’s apparel and textiles export sector, we envision that the long-term engagement of local partners through TNMS will ensure these activities continue to flourish. We will continue to facilitate member engagement with industry associations in Tamil Nadu, especially the South India Mills Association (SIMA). Of key importance going forward is a continued focus on remedy and grievance mechanisms within the sector, and support to the ongoing efforts of civil society organisations.

ETI continued to focus on gender equality throughout the year 2020-21. Funded through the Laudes Foundation, ETI undertook two gender-focused rapid assessments of the initial impact of Covid-19 on supply chain workers; one of production line workers in China, and another on Bangladeshi women workers in garment factories. An unexpected finding revealed strong disparity among male and female workers regarding their access to information and social media usage. In February 2021, ETI Bangladesh undertook another piece of primary research titled Access to information for the readymade garment workers in Bangladesh: A gender perspective, to help inform the ETI membership on the key barriers to access information among female RMG workers with a specific attention to usage of (smart) mobile phones and internet.

The ETI secretariat also published a number of gender-specific case studies within this time period, including topics such as Payslip rights for every worker, Calling time on forced overtime, Keeping workers safe and well, Maternity rights, and Fighting back against caste discrimination. Through our Nalam Programme in South India, ETI was able to facilitate the production of resources on building talent and leadership, mental wellbeing, women’s health and hygiene at work, and workplace sexual harassment.

ETI also established an alliance of MSIs, NGOs, trade unions, academics and other relevant stakeholders to form the Gender Expert Network for Global Supply Chains, with the primary purpose of providing cohesion and alignment on priorities and guidance for companies to improve gender equality and tackle gender-related issues in supply chains. The network focuses on information sharing between organisations and alignment on disaggregated data gathering, and advocating for ILO Convention 190: Violence and Harassment in the Workplace.