Wal-Mart under fire for 'unethical business practices'
Labour and garment industry leaders criticise US retail giant for distancing itself from Tazreen fire
Star Business Report
Labour and garment sector leaders yesterday came down hard on US
retail giant Wal-Mart over its conduct following the Tazreen fire,
saying its business practices were unethical.
“After a fire,
Wal-Mart cannot simply say that it would not take products from the
factory,” Roy Ramesh Chandra, chairman of Bangladesh National Council
(BNC), said at a discussion on the Bangladeshi garment sector.
Chandra,
also a member of International Labour Organisation's governing board,
added: “The company will have to take responsibility for their part and
give compensation to the workers for the loss of future earnings.”
"Otherwise, we will not allow Wal-Mart to do undisturbed business anywhere in the world," he threatened.
Tazreen Fashions was manufacturing garment products for Wal-Mart at the time of the fire that claimed at least 112 lives.
In
the aftermath of the fire, Wal-Mart cancelled all ties with Success
Apparel, a New York-based sourcing company that used to buy merchandise
from Tazreen in a complex sub-contract.
Mohammad Hatem, first
vice-president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters
Association (BKMEA), too, criticised Wal-Mart for distancing itself
following the Tazreen fire -- and refusing to take any responsibility.
“Their
approach was not right. They should come forward and help improve the
fire safety conditions in the apparel industry," Hatem said.
The BKMEA leader also criticised the buyers for their unwillingness to pay more to the manufacturers.
“They
bargain hard for one or two cents, and take their orders to another
supplier if they see that it will save them five cents."
Meanwhile,
Chandra said as the factory owners do not have the capacity to give
salaries to their workers which enables them a decent life, the brands
and buyers will have to pay the difference, which will, ultimately,
ensure a sound industry.
"Brands and buyers reap the maximum benefits of the garment business around the world," he said.
In
his keynote speech, Aamanur Rahman, a deputy director of ActionAid
Bangladesh, said the buyers in the value chain cannot finish their
responsibility just by placing orders with the suppliers.
"Similarly,
they also will not be able to avoid their responsibility by passing on
responsibilities onto others when any tragic incident takes place," he
said.
Abu Nayeem Md Shahidullah, former director general of Fire
Service and Civil Defence, said the Tazreen fire should be a turning
point for the garment industry.
“It is necessary to bring
comprehensive changes to the sector," he said, while identifying the lax
fire safety system as the Achilles' heel of the sector which employs
over 30 lakh workers and -- accounts for about 80 percent of the
country's exports.
Hatem urged all to use the momentum to take the sector forward -- and not just stop at restoring the garment sector's image.
Shahidullah
suggested factory owners to set up their own fire-fighting systems so
that any incidence of fire can easily be brought under control.
His successor Ali Ahammed Khan, the newly-appointed DG of the fire service, said fire safety is everyone's business.
Nazma
Akhter, executive director of Awaj Foundation, said the country does
not have a culture of following labour laws, while adding that the
factory owners are hardly informed of the laws.
Akhter said the
owners are mostly busy with making the buyers happy, which leaves them
with little to no time to take of the rights of the workers. "There is a
huge gap between the owners and the workers," she said.
Shirin
Akhtar, a rights activist, said workers should be placed at the heart of
all the efforts the country makes in repairing its image. "It is a
labour-intensive sector, so the owners and the buyers will have to look
at the workers if Bangladesh wants to restore its image."
"Labour
is never cheap and the workers are not a matter of mercy. The owners
will have to take this into consideration,” she said.
An official
of a global retain company said a group of major western brands have
written to Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, seeking her
involvement in talks on fire safety standards at the country's garment
factories.
The official said a group of chief executives from
European brands, which included Marks & Spencer, New Look Retailers
and Primark, under the umbrella of the UK-based Ethical Trading
Initiative (ETI), signed the letter on January 17. The letter has been
sent to the prime minister's office on Tuesday, he said.
Prof
Golam Rahman, president of Bangladesh Institute of Planners, and Monsur
Ahmed Chowdhury, a governing body member of ActionAid Bangladesh, also
spoke.
ActionAid Bangladesh, Population Services and Training
Centre, Awaj Foundation and Responsible and Accountable Garments Sector
Challenge Fund jointly organised the programme at the CIRCDAP's
auditorium in Dhaka.
