Compliance & export growth go together – Experts

13 Apr '10

2 min read

As per a German parliamentary team that recently visited Bangladesh, increasing wages and facilities to garment workers would not impede export growth of Bangladeshi readymade garments.

A two-member fact-finding mission had come to Bangladesh on April 7 from Germany. This mission noted that only one percent of the selling price of garment products is spent on workers by RMG manufacturers of the country, which is unacceptable.

The mission said that, Germany imports garment products worth around 1.9 billion Euros each year from Bangladesh and the German consumers are ready to pay extra for Bangladeshi RMG products, if garment manufacturers of the country improve wages and facilities for garment workers.

A German opposition MP pointed that the amount of socially compliant RMG manufacturers in Bangladesh is just five percent. While purchasing garment products in Germany, German consumers have to spend for social compliance, on the contrary, German importers, purchase garments from Bangladesh at low rates without considering the social compliance norms.

Export development and adhering to social compliance norms can be undertaken simultaneously, said the German legislator, emphasizing that, garment companies have to maintain social compliance as most of the Bangladeshi RMG units provide very low wages to their workers and don't pay them for their over-time.

A system of labeling the garments produced in socially compliant factories might be introduced by German authorities. Under this system, the tags on garment products would mention that a certain portion of the price of garment would be used for the welfare of the garment workers who manufactured it.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

More Apparel/Garments News - Bangladesh...