5 Bangladeshis made advisers
The Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, a platform of 27 US-based apparel retailers and brands, yesterday appointed 12 Bangladeshi and international leaders to its board of advisers.
Five of the advisers are from Bangladesh, according to a statement of the Alliance, which was formed with the intent of improving safety in Bangladeshi ready-made garment (RMG) factories.
“We are honored to welcome these esteemed global leaders to our Board of Advisors,” said Ellen Tauscher, independent chair of the Alliance and former US Congresswoman.
“The combination of their individual perspectives and breadth of expertise across government, women's issues, labor and global development will help us implement our comprehensive commitment to a safer ready-made garment industry in Bangladesh,” she adds.
The Bangladeshi advisers are Mohammad Hatem, vice president, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association; Mujibur Rahman, professor, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology; Sirajul Islam Rony, president, Bangladesh National Garment Workers Employees League; Sukkur Mahmud, president, Jatiya Sramik League; and Wajedul Islam Khan, general secretary, Bangladesh Trade Union Kendra.
The board of advisers will help guide the Alliance as it tracks implementation and progress against its aggressive goals, which include inspecting 100 percent of the Alliance garment factories by July 2014, implementing a comprehensive worker training programme and helpline, and providing remedial support for factories to address safety issues, read the statement.
More than 40 percent of factory inspections have been completed, training programmes are underway, the worker helpline will roll out to 50 factories this month, and the foundation has been built to provide important technical support and oversight of the remediation process so that factories can be upgraded and improved, it said.
“While the challenges in Bangladesh are many, the Alliance is making significant progress towards strengthening the working conditions in the ready-made garment industry and the well-being of its workers,” he said.
After the twin deadliest industrial disasters--Tazreen Fashions fire in November 2012 and Rana Plaza building collapse in April last year that killed more than 1,200 people--27 US-based apparel companies created the Alliance to inspect nearly 700 garment factories in Bangladesh.
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