|
Corporate Social Responsibility
News
9.25.2007 - 11:30pm ET
|
CSR News from:
|
|
|
News Categories: |
| | |
ILO, IFC Link with Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) to Promote Better Work in Global Supply Chains
(CSRwire) GENEVA/WASHINGTON - September 25, 2007 - The International Labour
Organization (ILO) and International Finance Corporation (IFC), the
private sector arm of the World Bank Group, have selected Business for
Social Responsibility (BSR) to lead an international buyers' consultative
forum for their joint global Better Work programme (www.BetterWork.org).
The forum will play a major role in efforts by the newly created Better
Work programme to improve labour practices and competitiveness in global
supply chains. It will facilitate the involvement of international buyers
with the programme at both the global and country level.
Better Work is developing global tools and is piloting three country
projects, in Jordan, Lesotho and Viet Nam with the full cooperation of
workers’ and employers’ organisations. The project combines enterprise
assessments of compliance with labour standards at the factory level, with
training and capacity building. The three pilot projects alone will
directly benefit over 800,000 workers.
"The Better Work programme is about fairer globalisation and reducing
poverty in developing countries. It is designed to improve the working
conditions in global supply chains while improving competitiveness and the
business case. International buyers have a critical role in this process by
supporting improvements in their own supply chains," said Ros Harvey, ILO
and IFC Better Work Global Programme Manager.
BSR is a leading non-profit business association in the field of corporate
social responsibility and counts among its members more than 250 of the
world’s largest international buyers across a range of industries. It
has offices in San Francisco, Europe, China and Hong Kong.
BSR will work with international buyers to convene global strategic
meetings, coordinate consultative processes, disseminate information and
lessons learned, and encourage active participation from buyers in the
Better Work programme. The ILO and IFC will work together with BSR to
reduce duplication of monitoring and redirect efforts to fixing problems
in global supply chains.
BSR already works with international buyers and the ILO and IFC in
Cambodia on the Better Factories Cambodia project, which inspired the
creation of Better Work. This Better Work approach has led to verified
improvements in working conditions across the Cambodian garment industry,
the creation of tens of thousands of new jobs, and sustained increases in
exports to the United States and the European Union.
Since the end of the Multi-Fibre Arrangement (MFA), jobs in Cambodia's
garment export market have increased by nearly 30 per cent despite
concerns that the industry would be decimated. In the first year after the
lifting of quotas, international buyers involved in the programme increased
exports at twice the industry average.
Under this agreement, BSR will coordinate international buyers involvement
with Better Work in industries such as apparel and textiles, agribusiness
at both plantation and processing levels, electronic, and other light
manufacturing.
"There is a strong need to develop strategic approaches to achieve
systematic, sustainable improvements in working conditions," said Tara
Rangarajan, BSR Director of Advisory Services. "Better Work is designed to
achieve these results and we are delighted to be able to work with the ILO
and IFC to achieve this goal. As an increasing number of international
buyers across industries seek to shift from their historic reliance on
monitoring, they are eager to participate in credible efforts like
this."
Ms. Harvey said, "Better Work's tools and country-specific programs will
enable us to work together with government, international buyers,
employers and workers' organisations on shared models that promote
sustainable impact at the national level. Future developments rely on the
collaboration of partners at the national level with international
buyers. Only through broad-based engagement can we find practical tools
and solutions that are based on actual experience. We need to measure what
we do, and identify what works and what doesn’t. Through this process we
will build support for change."
For more information, visit www.betterwork.org or contact:
Ros Harvey, at harvey@ilo.org or
+41 22 799 8714;
Tara Rangarajan at trangarajan@bsr.org or +1 619 546
8549.
About the ILO
The International Labour Organization (ILO) is devoted to advancing
opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work in
conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. Its main aims
are to promote rights at work, encourage decent employment opportunities,
enhance social protection and strengthen dialogue in handling work-related
issues. In promoting social justice and internationally recognized human
and labour rights, the organization continues to pursue its founding
mission that labour peace is essential to prosperity. Today the ILO helps
advance the creation of decent jobs and the kinds of economic and working
conditions that give working people and business people a stake in lasting
peace, prosperity and progress. For more information, visit www.ilo.org.
About IFC
The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World
Bank Group, is the largest multilateral provider of financing for private
enterprise in developing countries. IFC finances private sector
investments, mobilizes capital in international financial markets,
facilitates trade, helps clients improve social and environmental
sustainability, and provides advisory services to businesses and
governments. From its founding in 1956 through FY06, IFC has committed
more than $56 billion of its own funds for private sector investments in
the developing world and mobilized an additional $25 billion in
syndications for 3,531 companies in 140 developing countries. With the
support of funding from donors, it has also provided more than $1 billion
in advisory services. Energy efficiency is a core product line for IFC. In
2006, IFC has invested over $400 million in energy efficiency programs
world wide. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
About BSR
Since 1992, Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) has been providing
socially responsible business solutions to many of the world’s leading
corporations. Headquartered in San Francisco and with offices in Europe,
China and Hong Kong, BSR is a nonprofit business association that serves
its 250 member companies and other Global 1000 enterprises. Through
advisory services, convenings and research, BSR works with corporations
and stakeholders to create a more just and sustainable global economy. For
more information, visit www.bsr.org.
|
|
