FTA committed to improving safety in Bangla garment units

23 Apr '14

4 min read

“FTA has encouraged BSCI participants to join the Accord and we are pleased that 40% of the total signatories are BSCI participants, which clearly demonstrates their commitment to this endeavour”, explains Lorenz Berzau, BSCI Managing Director. Furthermore, BSCI has also raised awareness and has invited its members to contribute to the InternationalRana Plaza Donors' Trust Fund that was recently established by ILO to compensate individuals and families affected by the Rana Plaza incident.

As a brand representative, Bernardo Cruza, Acting Chair of the BSCI Steering Committee, is also a member of the Rana Plaza Coordination Committee which organises the Arrangement of this fund.

FTA Involved in High Level Political Dialogue

Companies have taken their share of responsibility, but for a sustainable change to take place, BSCI called on all stakeholders to continue fruitful cooperation, especially national authorities. “FTA has called on the Bangladesh government to create the appropriate regulatory framework to fulfil its obligation to ensure workers’ rights. The new labour law adopted in June 2013 must be strongly enforced to give workers the protection they need”, stressed Mr. Berzau.

In addition, FTA has engaged in intense discussions at political level with representatives of the European Parliament and the European Commission. Dialogue has also taken place at the national political level with local stakeholders in Bangladesh.

BSCI’s Safety Assessment and Training Reinforced

BSCI has also placed an added focus on its system, adapting its approach towards Health and Safety criteria. The initiative has made its evaluation of safety standards stricter and has improved the alert system that notifies companies when labour non-compliances have been identified in the Health and Safety area. In addition, training activities for factory management were adapted to place more emphasis on fire safety standards in Bangladesh.

Eleven of these workshops were conducted in the country in 2013 in cooperation with the Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) and four more are scheduled for 2014. Lorenz Berzau, BSCI Managing Director, said: “24 April is a sad day and our thoughts will be with the victims of this immense tragedy and their families. The efforts which have been put in place over the past year are encouraging. A lot still needs to be accomplished, while commitment and close cooperation must be maintained to bring safer working conditions to the Bangladesh industry.”

Foreign Trade Association

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