Recommended reading
The ETI code of labour practice: do workers really benefit?
Mixed findings on the effectiveness of voluntary labour codes
Authors:
S. Barrientos; S. Smith
Publisher:
Ethical Trading Initiative, UK, 2006
This report, commissioned by the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), aims to assess whether its own private sector code of conduct approach has had demonstrable positive effects for workers. The fieldwork comprised six case studies in India, Vietnam, UK, South Africa, Costa Rica and China in various sectors including: garments, footwear, fruit, horticulture, and bananas.
The report finds that existing voluntary labour codes:
- impacted positively on health & safety
- tended to reduce working hours
- encouraged greater compliance with minimum wage legislation
- reduced the incidence of child labour
- encouraged greater awareness of national labour legislation.
However, codes were less successful in:
- supporting extensions for freedom of association and collective bargaining
- addressing discrimination issues, particularly gender
- ensuring regular employment as there was evidence of a move towards use of casual and temporary workers.
The report contains a draft of recommendations for the ETI, brands/retailers, trade unions, NGOs and auditors to strengthen the ethical trade process focused around:
- working more collaboratively, both among companies and between stakeholder groups
- extending codes to all workers including casual, contract and migrant workers and those further up the supply chain
- shifting focus and resources for ensuring compliance with codes to sourcing countries
- making ethical trade more central to core business practice i.e. through integrating purchasing practices with ethical requirements.
