News

Great to see this blog on FashionRevolution.org, written by Mary Milne from our partner Traidcraft exchange.

She highlights the important contribution that hidden homeworkers make to global supply chains, helping fashion brands manage demand and produce beautiful hand-stitched clothes. 

With the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic, many homeworkers have lost their livelihoods and have no social security or savings to fall back on.  Work has completely stopped and they are very unlikely to receive any compensation or benefits.  Read the full article here:

Read More »

The Coronavirus pandemic has brought the world to a grinding halt.

Our partners in South Asia are reporting a very difficult situation, as the potential impact of the virus on people living on very low incomes and in overcrowded accommodation is compounded by the economic consequences of the virus and of government responses.

As the Clean Clothes Campaign is documenting, the slowdown in China has meant that many international brands were already cancelling their orders, leading to factory closures, unpaid wages and unemployment. Migrant workers are particularly vulnerable, as once they lose their work, many have no option but to set out on foot to return to their home villages.

Homeworkers are facing challenging situations, as much of their work too has come to a standstill. As they are employed informally they are rarely covered by social security schemes, leaving them with no income or access to health care, facing hunger and destitution. 

HWW is currently discussing with our partners in South Asia to understand more about how best we can support their response to the crisis, but in the meantime, you can read more about homeworkers’ situation in this report by our partners Homenet South Asia.

Read More »

Homeworkers Worldwide is now working with Traidcraft Exchange and HomeNet South Asia on their Hidden Homeworkers project, to improve the working conditions for homeworkers in apparel and footwear supply chains in India, Pakistan and Nepal.

Hidden Homeworkers is a four-year programme, co-funded by the European Union, that aims to work collaboratively with brands and multi-stakeholder initiatives to map supply chains down to the homeworker level. 

Under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), brands have a responsibility to conduct human rights due diligence across their supply chains, but without transparency to the level of homeworkers this is not possible: Hidden Homeworkers seeks to rectify this.

The programme will help brands introduce simple systems that document homeworkers’ contribution and wages, and develop action plans that drive transparency, best practices and improve working conditions.

For more information, see the flyer attached, or contact Lucy Brill at Homeworkers Worldwide.

Read More »

Peter Williams for HWW is publishing a blog on the Ethical Trading Initiative website today, highlighting the learning from our 2018 Innovations Fund project documenting working conditions in footwear supply chains, both within the factories and for homeworkers stitching leather uppers.

This was carried out in partnership with Cividep India and the Dalit Solidarity Network and two ETI member companies and their respective suppliers, with financial support from the ETI’s Innovation Fund.

The full report, entitled Due Diligence in Tamil nadu leather footwear manufacture, is also available on our website.

HWW is keen to work with other companies sourcing leather footwear from Tamil Nadu; please contact lucy Brill on lucy(at)homeworkersww.org.uk for more information.

Read More »

HWW is publishing today a report of our scoping study on working conditions in the textile and garment manufacturing industry within Greater Manchester. Thanks to everyone who helped us complete this study, particularly the workers and employers we spoke to, and the community workers and activists who helped us make contact with them, particularly Sandra Penaloza Rice and her colleagues at Migrants Support.

The report provides evidence that confirmed that the low wage rates (around £4/hour) and double accounting systems found by Professor Hammer in Leicester in 2015 were also present in sections of the industry in Greater Manchester. Small manufacturers also highlighted the challenges they faced, due to large retailers’ unfair purchasing practices, which included driving down prices to levels where it was impossible for them to pay their workers properly and leaving invoices unpaid for several months at a time.

We also highlight the importance of further research to enable workers voices to be heard in the debate to improve working conditions within UK manufacturing, and to prioritise our provisional policy recommendations. These include the importance of accessible employment rights advice backed up by effective enforcement services, that operate independently of immigration controls. Large retailers particularly those who value the flexibility and fact turnaround that local manufacturers can provide, need to recognise their responsibilities, and support their much smaller UK based suppliers to provide decent working conditions and a sustainable future for the UK industry.

HWW would be very keen to collaborate with others to find ways to extend this work. Please contact Lucy Brill at lucy(at)homeworkersww.org.uk to find out more.

Read More »