Building on lessons from Bangladesh: Expansion of the Accord workplace safety program to Pakistan

The International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry is an unprecedented legally binding agreement between more than 180 garment brands/retailers and global trade unions to make textile and garment factories safe. It came into effect on September 1, 2021, as the successor to the 2013 and 2018 Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh. The agreement promotes workplace safety through independent inspections, remediation, and training programmes and recognises the rights of workers to organise, refuse unsafe work and raise health and safety concerns. The Accord, with its brand and trade union signatories and the Bangladeshi manufacturers, has brought about remarkable and tangible positive impact in Bangladesh by applying key principles of due diligence; identifying salient risks and ensuring effective remedy for millions of workers in thousands of factories. In addition to the Accord’s work in Bangladesh now being implemented through the RMG Sustainability Council, the International Accord set out to explore expansion to other countries. Through surveys, desk research, and in-depth interviews, the Accord assessed the feasibility of such an expansion and based on key findings, Pakistan emerged as the priority country, along with Sri Lanka, Morocco and India. Since March 2022, the International Accord Secretariat met with key stakeholders from industry, government, trade unions, brands, and civil society for in-depth stakeholder consultations on the establishment of a Pakistan Accord. A decision among signatories to expand to Pakistan is imminent in December 2022, with the start of a workplace safety program in close cooperation with local stakeholders to commence in January 2023. The Accord will continue dialogue with stakeholders in Sri Lanka, Morocco, and India to assess the feasibility of establishing safety programmes in their garment and textile industries. This session will seek to identify the lessons, challenges and opportunities that led to the achievements in Bangladesh and explore how they can now be applied in other key garment and textile producing countries to improve workplace safety and bring about systemic change. The launch of the International Accord in Pakistan marks a historic milestone of applying the lessons from Bangladesh to other countries. Registration link coming soon.