Accord Update: Progress at Collegiate Factories and the Road Ahead

July 2, 2018

Dear Colleagues,

Please see here an update on the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, including the most recent data on the rate of safety progress at factories producing university logo apparel. As we have reported to you previously, the Accord has achieved sweeping progress on building safety in Bangladesh’s apparel sector since its inception. As a result, the large majority of factories producing for global brands and retailers in Bangladesh – including the collegiate factories – are now much safer than they were five years ago.

There is still much work left to be done to ensure that factories in Bangladesh do not return to the unsafe practices of the past. The agreement, which was originally due to expire at the end of May, was extended for an additional three years. There are many Accord factories where some required safety renovations are still outstanding and there is the vital ongoing work of ensuring, via regular and robust safety inspections, that the progress already achieved is sustained. Complicating matters, the government of Bangladesh, at the behest of factory owners hostile to genuine regulation, has not yet granted permission for the Accord inspection program to operate in Bangladesh long-term. The Accord’s signatories are working to address this problem, with support from US, Canadian, and European diplomats. These concerns are also discussed in the memo.

The WRC is committed to continuing its efforts to improve the safety of Bangladesh’s apparel industry.

We will continue to keep you informed of developments.

Best,

Scott

Scott Nova 
Executive Director
Worker Rights Consortium
[email protected]