Next week I am moderating this virtual webinar for investors on "Social protection for garment workers". If you are involved in pensions please ask your trustees/pension committee/board members, fund managers and financial advisors to attend.
"Employment injury insurance for garment workers in Bangladesh:
Social protection in action
Join us for an investor webinar on 18 October at 3pm UK / 10am
ET
Registration here
IndustriALL Global Union and the Local Authority
Pension Fund Forum will co-host a one-hour discussion of the recently
launched Employment Injury Scheme (EIS) for ready-made garment
workers in Bangladesh. In addition to presenting the pilot itself, the webinar
will explore why garment and textile brands are participating, their role in
funding it and the need for their continued involvement in the development of
sustainable employment injury insurance.
Speakers include Primark and H&M,
which are participating in the EIS pilot; the ILO, which supported
the pilot’s design; and IndustriALL, which represents workers on
the pilot’s tripartite committee. The webinar is aimed primarily at
institutional investors interested in working towards a more sustainable
garment industry built on respect for workers’ fundamental rights.
This event is part of a larger initiative spearheaded
by IndustriALL on social protection for garment workers. Social protection, which can cover needs
such as unemployment support, disability benefits and maternity protection, is
an internationally recognized human right. During the Covid-19 pandemic,
non-payment of wages due to brands’ cancellation of orders led to deepening
poverty for millions of global supply chain workers because of the fundamental
lack of social protection in producing countries. In several cases, this triggered
large-scale protests and brought operational, legal and financial risks for
sourcing brands.
Employment injury insurance is one of the most basic
forms of social protection. The Bangladesh pilot, which involves the
government, workers, employers and the ILO, is an example of what is possible
in the realm of social protection and of how brands are already participating
in the effort. The webinar follows on our earlier event in June
(recording here), in which workers from Thailand provided testimony
about the impact of wage theft on their lives. This next webinar will bring in
brands’ views on the importance of social protection and what their role can be.
Please join us on 18 October. Register here
Speakers:
Anne Marie La Rosa, Senior Policy, Legal & Labour
Rights Specialist, ILO
Christina Hajagos-Claussen, Director Textile &
Garment Industry, IndustriALL Global Union
Leyla Ertur, Head of
H&M Group Sustainability, H&M Group
Katharine Stewart, Group Corporate Responsibility
Director, Primark
Liz Umlas, Senior Advisor, IndustriALL Global Union
Cllr John Gray, Vice Chair, LAPFF (moderator)
