What We Do / Other Activities
HWW carries out a number of other activities both independently and with UK and international partners.
HWW organise public meetings, exhibitions and seminars in the UK with representatives from other countries. This allows us to raise the profile of the work and the issues.
Viji Srinivasan Fellowship Programme
In the summer, we have started running the Viji Srinivasan Fellowship Programme. This programme gives an opportunity to young women leaders, mainly from rural areas in India, to spend time in the UK working in the UK office and learning new skills.
HWW is seeking to develop a programme of student and volunteer placements , mainly in the UK office, helping us with research; organising visits or exchanges; expanding our publications and library resources. Please contact us for further information.
HWW works with other groups campaigning around working conditions, particularly in the fashion industry. HWW brings to these campaigns a specific angle on informal, homebased work. We highlight the fact that bad working conditions are not confined to factories in countries like China or Guatemala. Homeworking is common in many of the production chains involved in producing fashion goods and bad conditions are found in countries of both the North and South.
HWW is a member of the Ethical Trading Initiative, a UK-based initiative which is exploring ways of improving conditions in global production chains through a tripartite approach involving companies, trade unions and NGOs. Most recently, a homeworking group has been set up and has concentrated on producing and testing guidelines for the employment of homeworkers. Pilot projects have been carried out with homeworkers making Christmas crackers in South Wales and those doing embroidery and beading work in the North of India.
HWW is also a member of Labour Behind the Label, the UK arm of the Clearn Clothes Campaign and a platform for NGOs and trade unions to campaign on the fashion industry in the UK. LBL aims to educate consumers, lobby companies and government, raise awareness, and encourage international solidarity with workers.
Resource Centre
HWW has accumulated a small library of information and resources reflecting the work done over the last twenty years. A basic strength of our work has been in documentation and publications, including the use of photographs and sometimes videos. This visual material is an important tool in raising visibility and awareness of homebased workers.