A Call to Action

In the wake of the Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh, the UK-based Ethical Fashion Forum promised to respond to the tragedy by launching a constructive and proactive industry response. They recently released the first draft of their Value Chain Call to Action, a comprehensive document compiled after months of liaising with members and industry professionals that is something of a manifesto for garment workers’ rights.

The document – which is available to download here – outlines both short-term actions to improve the situation in Bangladesh, and long-term actions aimed at industry-wide change. Transparency, collaboration and the integration of better ethics into manufacturing and purchasing are the main pillars of the Value Chain, which outlines 17 real and achievable actions for improving workers’ rights and wages, and, ultimately, preventing industrial disasters like the one that took the lives of more than a thousand Bangladeshis last year.

The EFF are now calling for feedback on the Value Chain and for ongoing involvement from interested parties. For more information and to register as a collaborator, visit their website.