Whyretailersshouldaddresshomeworkers’
workingconditions:Thebusinesscase
Homeworkingisanimportantaspectoftheworld economy, presentina hugerange ofsectorsandcountries. Homeworkersthemselvesformanessentialpartofthe supplychain.Notonlydotheycarryoutspecialisedand intricateworkthatoftencannotbemechanisedcost effectively–suchas embroidery, beading,finishingand packing–buttheyalsoprovidemuch-neededflexibility inproduction.
Many retailershavehomeworkersintheirsupplychains
ETImembercompanieshaveidentifiedhomeworkinginthe UK,Portugal,India,PakistanandIndonesia,andtoalesser extentinGreece,Italy,Spain,Turkey,theBalkans,China, MalaysiaandthePhilippines.Thisislikelytobethecasefor manyretailers,eveniftheyarenotawareofit.
Homeworkersarelikelytobeworkingunder poorconditions
Despitetheirvalueinthesupplychain,homeworkersusually haveverypoorworkingconditions(lowpay,insufficient andirregularwork).Theycanbeveryvulnerableastheir employmentstatusmaybeunclear,andsotheymaynot receivebasicentitlementssuchasholidayandmaternity pay,socialsecuritybenefitsandjobsecurity.Theyareoften themainbreadwinnerforthehousehold,anddon’thavethe opportunity toearnmoneyoutsidethehouse.
Failingtoaddresshomeworkers’conditionspresents abusiness risk
Ifhomeworkersareworkingunderpoorconditions,thiscouldhave amajorimpactonaretailer’sbusiness,intermsof:
•Qualityofwork.Homeworkers’physicalenvironment andworkingpatternscanaffectthequalityoftheir work.Forexample,theymayhaveinadequatelighting, orbeworkinginunsuitablepremises–evenoutdoors– whereproductscangetdamagedordirty.Theymaybe
workinglonghourstotryandearnsufficientincome,or beunder pressuretomeetshort-termdeadlines–allof whichcanaffecttheirwork.
•Securityofsupplyandinterruptionsto
production.Homeworkers who are vulnerable to accidents or ill health may become unavailable at short notice, which could result in skills shortages or lack of production capacity. They may have little loyalty to their contractors, and switch employer at short notice when the opportunity for increased income or additional work arises.
•Qualityassurance.Qualityassurancesystemsrelyontransparencyinthesupplychain.Withoutunderstandingwherehomeworkingishappeningandunderwhatconditions,retailerscannotputsystemsinplacetoassurethemaboutthequalityoftheirproducts.Thispresentsarangeofrisks–forexample,intermsof compliancewithproductsafety standards.
•Compliancewithcodes/standards.Employersmaynot bemeetingminimumlegalstandardsforhomeworkers onhealthandsafety,wages,childlabourorbonded labour,whichmeansthatretailersfailtomeetcodesof labourpracticeorothercommitmentstheyhavemade abouttheirproducts.
•Publicopinion.Wherepoorworkingconditionsare uncovered,thereisarealrisktobusinessesfromhigh- profile exposésinthepress,byNGOs,tradeunionsorotherinterestedgroups–allofwhichcanhavea negativeimpactoncompanyreputation,investor behaviour, customerloyaltyandthebottomline.
Doingnothing,ortryingtoaddresstheissuebybanning homeworkersthrougha‘nohomeworker’policy,usually leadstoconcealmentofhomeworking,whichexacerbates thepotentialrisksandmakesitverydifficult toraise homeworkers’ payandconditions.
Workingtoimproveconditionsfor homeworkers canhaverealbenefits
Workingwithsuppliersandotherstoidentifyhomeworkers andhelpimprovetheirworkingconditions,willnotonly improvethelivesofhomeworkersandtheirfamilies,butcan haverealbenefitsforretailers’business.
•Improvedrelationshipswithsuppliers.Spendingtime discussingtheimportanceofhomeworkersandpossible waysofaddressingtheirworkingconditionscanhelp developtrustandopennesswithsuppliers.Thiscan
leadto:
-Increasedtransparencyalongsupplychains.
Suppliersandcontractorswill notfeeltheneed toconcealthepresenceofhomeworkinginthe production process,whichwillhelpreducerisk.
“Thereismuchmoretransparencyinthesupply chainnow.Therecanbea lotoflastminute changesatthesupplier’send,intermsofmoving production.Supplierspreviouslymightnothave beenkeepingusupdated,butthisischanging now.”(EthicalTradingManager,India,Monsoon Accessorize)
-Enhancedcommunication.Suppliersmay
feelmoreabletodiscussarangeofproduction andworkforce issueswithretailers.
-Moreefficientsupplychains.Better
Transparencyandimprovedcommunicationcanmeanbetter production planning,increasedopportunityfor efficiency,andlessdisruptiontoproduction.
•Betterqualityproducts.Homeworkersworkinginsafe and healthy conditions, with regular and secure work and reasonable hours, and who earn a living wage for that work, are much more likely to produce good quality work, on time and to the specifications required. Evidence shows that training homeworkers and promoting more stable and transparent supply chains can dramatically lower product reject and return rates. “Communicationhasimprovedand,according to feedbackfromoursuppliers,thathashelpedimprove quality.” (EthicalTradingManager,India,MonsoonAccessorize)
•Securityofsupply.Processescarriedoutby homeworkersareoftenhighlyskilled;retainingskilled homeworkersisimportanttoensurecontinuityof supplyofparticularprocesses.
•Improvedcompliance.Allretailersneedtocomplywith nationalandinternationallabourstandards,andmany havemadepubliccommitmentstocompanyorother codesoflabourpractice,suchastheETIBaseCode. Addressinghomeworkers’conditionscanhelpimprove compliance,aswellasbringingadditionalbenefits throughimprovedsupplychainrelations.
•Enhancedpublicimage.Interestandcampaigning aroundworkers’conditionsinsupplychainsisgrowing. Recentexperienceshowsthatitisnolongeruncommon forretailerstofindthemselvesatthecentreofamedia stormduetoexposésaboutconditionsofworkers makingtheirproducts–andcustomershaveheldthem responsibleforthoseworkers,nomatterhowfardown thesupplychaintheyare.In contrast,companiesthat candemonstratetheyareactively addressingworkers conditions–particularlyforvulnerableworkerssuch
ashomeworkers–canenhancetheirpublicimage, thusprotectingtheirreputationandpotentiallyeven increasingsales.
•Betterlivesforhomeworkers.Itseemsobvious,butwe shouldn’tforgetprobablythemostimportantbenefitof all.Takingactiontoimprovehomeworkers’ conditions canhelpimprovethelivesofmillionsofpeople–not onlythehomeworkersthemselves,buttheirfamiliesandthecommunitiestheylivein.
•Reducedrisk.Overall,identifyingwhetherhomeworkers arepresentinsupplychains,aswellasstartingto addresstheirworkingconditions,canhelpreduce production risksandreputationrisks(seeabove).“Wehave bettercommunicationwitha lotof suppliers(and)getmorequestionsfromsuppliers… Communicationdecreasesrisk.” (EthicalTrade Manager,India,Primark)
Take actionnow!SeetheETIhomeworkerguidelinesforadviceonhowyoucanimproveworkingconditionsfor homeworkers:.