RSC to expand activities beyond safety issues amid industry disagreement
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The RMG Sustainability Council (RSC) is set to expand its activities beyond safety-related issues as it plans to address concerns mainly involving workers’ rights, including wages, trade unions, and collective bargaining, amid disagreement from industry leaders.
Industry insiders said the RSC should focus on and complete its mandated tasks, which are to monitor and ensure workplace safety — including fire, electrical, and structural integrity — alleging that the platform keeps factories on a long waiting list.
They said the issue has been pending for nearly a year, as industry representatives have not agreed despite consensus from global buyers and trade unions.
In a recent letter to its listed factories, the RSC stated that “following the successful pilot on the non-OSH [Occupational Safety and Health] complaints mechanism, RSC is now expanding the complaints mechanism beyond OSH to cover a wide range of workplace-related issues.”
The expanded Comprehensive Complaints Mechanism (CCM) will now cover issues such as unfair employment contracts and separations, wages, benefits, and leave.
It will also address freedom of association and collective bargaining, child labour, forced labour, and other issues related to discrimination in garment factories.
According to the letter, the decision to expand non-OSH-related activities will take effect on November 16 in two phases.
Initially, the first phase of the expanded mechanism, to be effective from November 16 for six months, will include 58 brands and 1,185 factories and is expected to establish the foundation for full implementation.
In the second phase, the remaining brands and factories will be incorporated, the letter added.
The RSC is the safety initiative currently monitoring and carrying forward the significant progress made in workplace safety in the country’s readymade garment (RMG) industry after taking over the functions of the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh in June 2020.
The Accord, a platform of more than 220 mostly European brands, buyers, and trade unions, was formed immediately after the Rana Plaza building collapse in 2013 for five years to inspect fire, electrical, and structural safety in garment factories.
When asked, RSC Managing Director Abdul Haque said, “This was agreed upon at the RSC Board of Directors meeting held on October 20. The RSC will implement the expanded mechanism in phases as decided in the meeting.”
Explaining the tripartite representation on the board, he said there are 18 members — six each from international brands and retailers, national and international trade unions, and local industries.
Speaking to the Financial Express, Mohammad Hatem, President of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), said he was not aware of the issue, adding that no such agreement was reached during his presence at the meeting.
Hatem, also a board member of the RSC, said he attended the meeting for two to three hours, and until that time, the issue had not been decided.
“RSC’s jurisdiction does not cover non-OSH-related issues, and they will not be allowed to do so,” he noted.
Mohiuddin Rubel, Additional Managing Director of Denim Expert Ltd, said the RSC — which was initially formed to monitor safety in garment factories — has not been able to complete its designated inspection and remediation activities on time and efficiently.
“It should complete its tasks first, timely and efficiently,” he said.
Echoing Mr Rubel, the BKMEA leader said the proposed expansion of RSC activities will require additional time, manpower, and cost.
“The industry cannot bear the extra cost in the name of salaries for additional people at a time when buyers’ unethical purchasing practices are depriving factories of fair product prices,” he warned.