Example in Action: The International Accord Tackles Hazardous Work Risks in Bangladesh and Pakistan

The International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry (International Accord), which was signed in September 2021, is a legally binding agreement on building and fire safety between brands, South Asian garment unions, and the global trade federations IndustriALL and UNI Global Union. The International Accord is governed by a steering committee of brand and union representatives; international labor CSOs serve as witness signatories. It evolved from the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, negotiated in 2013 after the tragic collapse of the garment factories at Rana Plaza, which killed 1,133 people and injured hundreds more. Like the Bangladesh Accord, the International Accord is a binding agreement that commits signatory brands to ensuring their supplier factories are made safe. Brands require their factories to be open to inspections by qualified Accord engineers and help fund necessary repairs. Under the Bangladesh Accord, more than 130,000 repairs have been made across over 1,600 covered factories, making two million workers safer. Other features of the agreement include shared and equal governance by trade unions and brands, worker access to confidential complaints mechanism with protection from reprisal, the right for workers to refuse dangerous work, health and safety trainings for workers, and a labor management safety and health committee at each covered factory. Currently, over 200 global apparel and retail companies have signed on to the International Accord.  The signatories include many of the world's largest apparel companies, such as adidas and the H&M Group. 

In December 2022, the signing of the Pakistan Textile and Apparel Health and Safety Accord (Pakistan Accord) made Pakistan the first country beyond Bangladesh where the legally binding agreement between global apparel companies and IndustriALL and UNI Global Union would be implemented. The duration of the Pakistan Accord is for an initial term of three years starting in January 2023.  The Pakistan Accord will apply the provisions of the International Accord to signatory global companies’ supplier factories in Pakistan.  As of early August 2024, more than 120 brands had signed the Pakistan Accord.  

For more information, visit: https://internationalaccord.org/updates

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