Issue 324
May 15, 2015
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Welcome to the  WRAP Weekly Newsletter! Please enjoy it and thank you for being a loyal reader. 
The WRAP Up
Last week we certified 41 factories in 12 countries:
Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam.



 

Bangladesh
The Protham-Alo newspaper has issued a public apology after incorrectly reporting about an incident involving a pregnant employee at a Bangladeshi footwear factory known for its consistent compliance with labor standards. Late last week, the paper reported that a female worker at the Apex Footwear factory in Gazipur had a miscarriage in a factory bathroom after she was allegedly denied requested maternity leave from the factory's managers. Upon further investigation however, it was discovered that the woman in fact never revealed that she was pregnant to her factory superiors, her family, or doctors who had treated her for abdominal pain just hours before the incident. In a public statement, the Apex factory said that the woman would have been granted her maternity leave without question if they knew she was pregnant and that they will continue to investigate the matter. The Protham-Alo newspaper has also issued an apology to the factory and says that they have disciplined the journalists responsible for publishing the false story. ( Protham Alo)

A group of 1,000 garment workers from 2 garment factories staged a demonstration at a Savar bus station on May 9 demanding the reopening of their facilities and the end of alleged random termination of workers. The workers say that some of their colleagues were fired after they staged an earlier protest demanding that labor inspectors examine their factory for structural flaws in light of the recent Nepal earthquake. Factory managers say that they have not reopened because of a shortage of orders. ( The Daily Star)

Bangladesh is likely to miss its garment export target for FY2014-15 by about US$2 billion due to industry restructuring and political turmoil, according to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB). The EPB says that Bangladesh has earned just over US$25 billion in the first 10 months of the year, but may still fall short of a US$33.2 billion annual target at the current rate of production. ( New Age BD)

The government of Bangladesh has established a new welfare fund specifically to benefit the country's millions of garment workers. The fund will be sustained by a 0.03% earnings tax on the exports of garment factories, which would result in about US$8 million per year of contributions to be used to compensate injured workers or the families of workers killed on the job. ( Women's Wear Daily)
*NOTICE: This article requires a paid subscription

Bangladeshi women will soon have a unique opportunity to grow their entrepreneurial skills thanks to a new program supported by Pakistan. That country's High Commissioner to Bangladesh recently signed an agreement with Bangladesh's Micro Industries Development Assistance and Services (MIDAS) department to provide a 3-week training course on enterprise and skill development for small and mid-level women entrepreneurs in the garment sector. Those who complete the course will also be eligible to utilize a unique marketing platform run by MIDAS to market their products and attend specialized trade fairs. ( Fibre2Fashion)
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Cambodia

Dozens of garment workers were injured on May 8 after a van transporting them to work overturned. Authorities say that the van was transporting 35 workers to factories in a local Special Economic Zone, even though it was only designed to hold 15 passengers. Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for the driver of that van. (Cambodia Daily)

 

Garment exports from Cambodia grew by 11% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2015, according to the country's Commerce Ministry, to reach US$1.71 billion. Last year, apparel accounted for 80% of all Cambodian exports, bringing in over US$5.7 billion in revenue, and comprised approximately 33% of the country's overall GDP. Exports to Europe, Cambodia's largest export market, grew by 16% while exports to the U.S., is's second-largest market, actually dipped slightly by 1%. (Cambodia Daily

 

Egypt

Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court has issued a ruling that many see as a major erosion of workers' rights to strike. The ruling centers around 17 government employees whom the court said disrupted the function of their agency when they went on strike, a violation of Islamic Sharia law. Three of the workers will be forced into retirement while the rest will be ineligible for a promotion for at least 2 years. Many international observers have criticized the ruling, saying that it violates the country's own constitution. (Al Monitor)

   

Germany

German sportswear brand Puma has committed to more frequent and more rigorous supplier audits and to removing hazardous chemicals from its supply chain as part of its new sustainability strategy. The company says it has partnered with global risk assessment firm Verisk Maplecroft to implement a new assessment method designed to widen the company's ability to identify and manage risks along its supply chain. The new framework will use 17 global risk indices and geographic information to assess social, political, economic, and environmental risks. (Just Style) *NOTICE: This article requires a paid subscription.  

 
India

At least 45 workers at a garment factory in Faridabad fell ill on May 10 after reportedly drinking water treated by the factory's Reverse Osmosis (RO) system. Several workers were sent to the hospital after they complained of nausea and began vomiting, with some even falling unconscious. All of the workers are expected to recover. (Zee News)

 

The government of India says that it is finalizing a new national textile policy aimed at boosting the country's exports. Officials say that the new policy aims to achieve US$300 billion in textile exports by 2024 and could create as many as 35 million new jobs. The proposed measure will also address several industry issues, including workforce readiness, labor reforms, and outside investments. (Fibre2Fashion)

 

The Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board (RSPCB) has issued closure notices to 893 textile production units in the Sanganer region after they reportedly failed to install effluent treatment plants and it was discovered that they were dumping millions of gallons of polluted water into the nearby Dravyawati River every day. The local power company has also been ordered to shut off service to these facilities. All of the units have been ordered to close by June 30. (Times of India)

 

Global chemical company Stahl India has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with the Indian Central Leather Research Institute to make the Indian leather industry more sustainable. The Indian government recently identified sustainability as a key priority to keep the leather industry competitive around the globe, and says that a partnership with Stahl will help provide significant expertise and innovation to Indian leather manufacturers to make them sustainable for years to come. Stakeholders hope that this partnership will serve as an example to the entire leather industry. (Fibre2Fashion)

 

Pakistan

The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) is asking the government for urgent assistance in an attempt to save the country's struggling textile industry. The head of the group says that Pakistan's textile industry has become "unviable" due to the excessive subsidies granted to the industry in several areas of the country. He also lamented the ongoing energy shortages facing the industry, which have only worsened in recent weeks. (Fibre2Fashion)

 

Philippines

Barred windows and lax safety standards are being blamed for the high death toll following a massive fire at a sandal factory near Manila. At least 72 people have been confirmed dead following the blaze. While investigators are still trying to determine the official cause of the fire, witnesses say that there was a man doing welding work near the entrance of the facility just minutes before the blaze ignited. It's estimated that between 200 and 300 people were working in the factory when the blaze ignited.

(GMA News / Government of the Philippines*)

*This links to a statement issued by the Secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in reaction to the fire. 

 

Sri Lanka

The newly-elected government of Sri Lanka has agreed to set a new minimum wage for all private sector workers for the first time, including those in the garment sector. The proposal would set the national monthly minimum wage at US$74, representing an increase of 15-35% for workers and bringing them closer to their public sector counterparts. (Colombo Page)

  

Switzerland

The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) says that it grew by more than 18% last year with India and Bangladesh leading the way. GOTS officials say that at 338 new facilities, India by far posted the highest rate of growth, followed by Bangladesh at 89, Germany at 32, and Turkey at 21. GOTS says that it had 3,663 facilities in 2014, up from 3,085 in 2013. (Apparel News)

 

United States

Leaders in the U.S. Senate have reached a deal to move forward with a vote on the proposed Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) measure which would give U.S. President Barack Obama the authority to engage in trade negotiations unilaterally, including the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The deal includes a promise to vote on several other trade-related measures, including a bill to prevent countries from keeping the value of their currencies artificially low and a vote on the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). This comes just days after Senate Democrats blocked debate on the TPA bill. (Reuters / CBS News)

 

Vietnam

Numerous foreign textile and garment firms are pouring investments into Vietnam hoping to position themselves to take advantage of several pending foreign trade deals, including the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Several major companies in places like Hong Kong and South Korea have already constructed multi-million dollar production facilities in the country and it is expected that this trend will continue in the coming months. Vietnamese officials say that textile and garment exports could top US$28 billion this year. (Voice of Vietnam)


About WRAP
Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, U.S.A., with regional offices in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Hong Kong S.A.R., and representatives in India and Southeast Asia (Thailand and Vietnam), WRAP is an independent, objective, non-profit team of global social compliance experts dedicated to promoting safe, lawful, humane, and ethical manufacturing around the world through certification and education.
To learn more about WRAP, please visit www.wrapcompliance.org.

Notice: The WRAP Weekly Newsletter is a collection of links to current news articles, relevant to social compliance. While most articles are freely available, some may require a paid subscription to access. WRAP is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

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