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July 16, 2013<\/p>\n
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Washington, DC\u2014Today the nation\u2019s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy group expressed its disappointment in a toothless agreement signed by 17 American retailers on July 10. The so-called \u201c\u00a0Worker Safety Initiative<\/a>\u201d purports to improve working conditions in Bangladesh. In the aftermath of the Rana Plaza building collapse, which took 1,129 Bangladeshi workers\u2019 lives in April, companies around the world have been under pressure to improve factory conditions. In May, nearly 70 of them\u2014almost all European\u2014signed the Accord on Building and Fire Safety in Bangladesh, a legally binding agreement with enforcement power absent in its new, American counterpart. America\u2019s biggest retailers\u2014including Walmart, Gap, Target, and Macy\u2019s\u2014refused to sign the European agreement.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile the National Consumers League is pleased that American companies have taken action to address the often abysmal working conditions in Bangladesh, this initiative requires close examination,\u201d said NCL Executive Director Sally Greenberg. \u201cNCL and other worker\u2019s rights and labor rights groups believe it lacks the enforcement and mandatory procedures found in the accord signed by European companies.\u201d<\/p>\n Under the American plan, participating companies would contribute money towards factory improvements, but the factory owners are responsible for allocating the money and coordinating those improvements. The American companies were unwilling to sign the European Accord because, under it, they could have been subject to unwanted liability. The American agreement is not legally binding, and companies can opt out of the alliance at any point.<\/p>\n
Contact: Ben Klein, NCL Communications,\u00a0benk@nclnet.org<\/a>, (202) 835-3323\u00a0<\/p>\n