A decade after the deadly fire at Ali Enterprises in September 2012, which killed more than 255 garment workers because emergency exits were locked, not much seems to have changed: the exits are still closed, meaning that Ali Enterprises – one of the worst industrial accidents in Pakistan’s history – could happen again at any time.
This is the finding of the report Workers’ lives at risk: how brands profit from unsafe factory work in Pakistan, co-authored by the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) and the Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research, Data and Methods (WISERD). Cardiff University was released. They are calling for an urgent expansion of the International Accord in Pakistan, a legally binding security agreement to protect workers.
“Local workers and unions have been demanding a binding security agreement for years. The implementation of the International Accord in Pakistan would not only ensure the safety of workers, but also ensure that they have the opportunity to negotiate directly with brands and the factory workers. Workers in Pakistan urgently need a binding safety agreement, not only to solve the safety problems in the factories, but also to provide them with security by addressing the low worker registration rates,” commented Nasir Mansoor, Secretary General of the National Federation of Trade Unions in Pakistan, in a statement.
Extend Accord to Pakistan
The South Asian country’s textile and clothing industry employs around 4.2 million workers – the majority (2.2 million people) of whom make clothing; 1.8 million are employed in textiles, and 200,000 are part of the shoe and leather industries.
To find out what changes are needed to protect them, the Clean Clothes Campaign conducted a comprehensive survey of nearly 600 workers, covering issues such as workplace harassment, workplace health and safety, and their overall well-being.
“Most pressing were the deficiencies in some of the most basic safety precautions in Pakistan’s garment production, even when required by law,” the survey found.
Exits still inaccessible
85 percent of the workers reported that they would not have access to suitable stairs in the event of a fire. A fifth stated that there were no fire drills at their workplace and that they were not aware of escape routes and emergency exits. In factories where women make up the majority of workers, only three-quarters of workers said they had access to unhindered escape routes.
“It is clear that worker safety is a gender issue, with women consistently underperforming their male counterparts in the garment industry. Implementation of the agreement would have huge benefits for women’s safety in the workplace and would give us a mechanism to make our grievances heard and respond to them,” said Zehra Khan, Secretary General of the Home Based Women Workers Federation Pakistan, in a statement.
In addition, the survey found that independent factory inspections are not conducted in Pakistan, so while workers reported fire alarms and some safety mechanisms, regular inspections were not conducted to ensure systems and equipment were working.
Laws alone are not enough, implementation must take place
“Although health and safety laws have been tightened in the provinces of Sindh and Punjab in recent years, worker safety cannot be guaranteed without proper implementation of these laws and without effective labor inspection,” confirms Khalid Mahmood, Director of Labor Education Foundation in Pakistan.
“The survey results highlight the urgent need to extend the International Covenant on Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry to Pakistan. The agreement would ensure regular independent factory inspections by qualified engineers, require compliance with time-bound plans to correct identified safety risks, and provide a grievance mechanism for workers to hold factory management accountable for implementing safety procedures without fear of retaliation. The involvement of local unions and other local workers’ rights organizations in the design, governance and implementation of the extension of the agreement to Pakistan will be crucial,” concludes CCC and WISERD.
“The responsibility for ensuring that factory workers in Pakistan can go to work safely rests with the brands that supply and benefit from these factories. Brands have the power to lead and make changes that impact the lives of millions of workers can improve by giving them what we all have a right to expect – a safe and healthy workplace and the right to help shape that workplace,” said Ineke Zeldenrust of the Clean Clothes Campaign in a statement.