Audience:
Open industry. All apparel and footwear industry professionals, regardless of AAFA membership, are encouraged to participate.
Description:
If your company is sourcing or intends to begin sourcing apparel from India, Global Labor Justice (GLJ) and the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) would like to invite you to join a discussion with signatories to the Dindigul Agreement to Eliminate Gender-based Violence and Harassment (GBVH). This is an opportunity to learn more about the implementation of the Agreement and the key elements that have led to the successful remediation and prevention of GBVH at a supplier in Tamil Nadu, India.
The Dindigul Agreement consists of a set of interlocking agreements: i) a program agreement between the Tamil Nadu Textile and Common Workers Union (TTCU) and Eastman Exports Global Clothing Private Limited; and ii) three individual agreements between H&M Group, Gap Inc., and PVH Corporation, and labor stakeholders TTCU, GLJ, and the Asia Floor Wage Alliance (AFWA).
This is a off-the-record briefing with brands. You will have the chance to ask questions about the roles of the supply chain actors who signed the Agreement, how they worked together to identify, remediate, and prevent GBVH at the covered supplier, and opportunities to become part of the next phase of the Agreement.
The briefing will answer the following questions:
- What does implementation of the Dindigul Agreement look like on the ground?
- What improvements in labor rights protections at the supplier have been achieved through the implementation of the Dindigul Agreement?
- How did the Dindigul Agreement lead to a modification of a Withhold Release Order (WRO) issued by the Customs and Border Protection against the supplier?
- What are the key elements that have led to the development of a functioning grievance mechanism?
This invitation is open to all brands interested to learn more about the Dindigul Agreement and the model of enforceable supply chain agreements, and in particular those sourcing from the Eastman factory group and more broadly, the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India.
Here you can find an independent third-party assessment of the impact of the Dindigul Agreement, led by the Global Labor Institute at Cornell University, which concludes that there is “overwhelming evidence that the Dindigul Agreement is meeting the goals for which it was created” and demonstrates that access to freedom of association is critical to achieving sustained remediation and prevention of GBVH.
We hope you will be able to join us and we look forward to a thriving discussion.
Call information will be provided in the "Important Event Information" section of your registration confirmation.
Contact:
Nate Herman