Ten years after the disaster at Rana Plaza in Bangladesh, Development Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) still sees the global textile industry facing major challenges. “There is still a lot to do, especially when it comes to living wages and gender equality,” Schulze said in a statement on Saturday. “The next step must now be strong European supply chain legislation.”
On April 24, 2013, the eight-storey Rana Plaza textile factory complex collapsed. More than 1000 people died in the production facility not far from the capital Dhaka. The disaster highlighted the appalling working conditions of millions of garment workers who make clothes for the western world.
Wake-up call for companies in Europe
Schulze spoke of a terrible wake-up call for more corporate responsibility in Europe. “The fact that we have a supply chain law in Germany today is also a consequence of the events of ten years ago.” It is particularly important to her that “the rules help those for whom they are made: the people at the beginning of the supply chain, including many women and children.”
Schulze told Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR24) that workers in low-cost production countries should be granted more rights. Civil lawsuits should be possible. “I want people who have been harmed by European companies to have the right to sue in a German court,” said the minister. “There must be a common solution in Europe.” (dpa)