ISEAL Alliance

Anna Ashbaugh, Advisory Services Associate, AccountAbility

The textiles and apparel sector faces unique social and environmental challenges throughout their supply chain. Exploring those challenges was the aim of a panel, moderated by Jacob Malthouse, co-founder of Big Room, which closed Public Day at the ISEAL Conference in Zurich last month. 

The session explored how voluntary standards such as SA8000, as well as emerging initiatives like Cotton made in Africa, and supply chain tools including the Eco Index and the European Outdoor Group, can be used at different value chain hotspots. The session highlighted how the textile industry has made clear strides in advancing sustainability, but also brought to light how difficult it has been to ensure good practices across the industry.

Panelist Robin Cornelius, founder of Switcher, a company that supplies affordable garments manufactured in ways that meet social and environmental criteria, stressed that traceability will be key for the future and should be compulsory. Cornelius believes that in the next ten years reputational risks in the supply chain will drive additional interest in ensuring sustainability. He outlined a vision in which NGOs will play a prominent role in providing credibility and traceability services to companies in their supply chain in order to reduce risk.

According to fellow panelist Alice Tepper Marlin, President of Social Accountability International, two of the most problematic issues in the industry are work hours, and wages, because both have clear linkages to a company’s bottom line. Constant consumer demand creates a competitive environment, and when costs need to be contained, these are often the two areas to first get squeezed. Discrimination is also common, but as a criterion for ethical standards systems to measure, it is a difficult one for auditors to readily identify within the workplace. In addition, home-workers often lack protection, and migrants can be subject to unfair and hazardous conditions.

One particularly complicated example that Tepper Marlin highlighted is the Sumangali scheme, a form of forced labour whereby young unmarried women are recruited to work in textile factories. In this scheme the girls enter into a contract in which the employer retains a part of the girl’s monthly wages for their dowry. The girls lose the dowry if they attempt to leave early and often live in sub-standard conditions, receive very low wages, and are exposed to various forms of abuse. Adherence to the SA8000 standard means that certified factories do not engage in this scheme, but the practice is still prevalent in non-certified factories in Southeast Asia

Panelists agreed that consumer awareness is critical today to push sustainability in the apparel sector. Consumers are still largely unaware of the sustainability of products they buy, but if it becomes a matter of image to buy “green,” companies will be more compelled to make changes in their supply chain.

Tina Stridde from Aid by Trade, which manages the Cotton Made in Africa initiative, cited the blogging community as an important group that can engage consumers. She admitted that Cotton Made in Africa has received some criticism from bloggers, but that it led to positive developments because it began a dialogue on how to address various concerns in the cotton sector.

The panel also discussed how public procurement is an area that could support the sustainability movement. Governments purchase a significant amount of textiles ranging from hospital bedding and army fatigues to school uniforms but, so far, their focus hasn’t been on purchasing from sustainable sources. Their leadership could play a pivotal role in advancing the movement.

To read about other sessions that took place on the ISEAL Conference Public Day 2011 and download resources, including powerpoint presentations, visit our conference resources page.