Better Work
New Garment Industry Data shows Gender Equality Progress and Challenges
New data released in time for International Women's Day illustrates the progress of and remaining challenges for women working in the global garment industry.
HANOI (ILO News) - New data released in time for International Women's Day illustrates the progress of and remaining challenges for women working in the global garment industry.
The findings, outlined in an infographic entitled Women and the Garment Industry in 2015 come from Better Work, a programme of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) which focuses on garment sector labour conditions in developing countries.
Garment factories in Cambodia, Indonesia, Viet Nam, Jordan, Haiti, Nicaragua and Lesotho have shown progress in some areas related to gender equality including maternity practices, allowances and safety. However, the findings also caution that challenges remain in terms of sexual harassment, wage distinctions between male and female workers, discrimination and the quality of life that female garment workers experience compared with that of their male counterparts.
75% of all of the workers in the factories where Better Work operates are female, ranging from 53% in Nicaragua to 81% in Viet Nam.
"The world's clothes are predominantly made by women. The information that we have captured in this infographic shows many moves in the right direction such as making it easier for working mothers and reducing some inequalities but there is a need for these changes to translate into better conditions for female garment workers on a grander scale" said Arianna Rossi, Research and Policy Officer for Better Work.
She continued: "Our findings also demonstrate that where there is a commitment to workplace policies that are favourable to female workers, it can bring profitability and productivity so addressing existing inequalities also makes real business sense".
The aim of the Better Work is for garment workers' rights to be realized and for factories who uphold labour laws and standards to be profitable and productive. The programme's strategy to achieve this involves working with major industry stakeholders at global and country levels in addition to intensive work on the ground with factories. The programme operates in eight countries, Cambodia, Indonesia, Viet Nam, Jordan, Haiti, Bangladesh, Nicaragua and Lesotho and currently reaches 1000 factories employing more than one million workers. For more information, please visit http://betterwork.org.
For more details please contact:
Arianna Rossi, Research and Policy Officer, Better Work
Tel: +41 22 799 7108
Email: rossi@ilo.org
The findings, outlined in an infographic entitled Women and the Garment Industry in 2015 come from Better Work, a programme of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) which focuses on garment sector labour conditions in developing countries.
Garment factories in Cambodia, Indonesia, Viet Nam, Jordan, Haiti, Nicaragua and Lesotho have shown progress in some areas related to gender equality including maternity practices, allowances and safety. However, the findings also caution that challenges remain in terms of sexual harassment, wage distinctions between male and female workers, discrimination and the quality of life that female garment workers experience compared with that of their male counterparts.
75% of all of the workers in the factories where Better Work operates are female, ranging from 53% in Nicaragua to 81% in Viet Nam.
"The world's clothes are predominantly made by women. The information that we have captured in this infographic shows many moves in the right direction such as making it easier for working mothers and reducing some inequalities but there is a need for these changes to translate into better conditions for female garment workers on a grander scale" said Arianna Rossi, Research and Policy Officer for Better Work.
She continued: "Our findings also demonstrate that where there is a commitment to workplace policies that are favourable to female workers, it can bring profitability and productivity so addressing existing inequalities also makes real business sense".
About Better Work
The aim of the Better Work is for garment workers' rights to be realized and for factories who uphold labour laws and standards to be profitable and productive. The programme's strategy to achieve this involves working with major industry stakeholders at global and country levels in addition to intensive work on the ground with factories. The programme operates in eight countries, Cambodia, Indonesia, Viet Nam, Jordan, Haiti, Bangladesh, Nicaragua and Lesotho and currently reaches 1000 factories employing more than one million workers. For more information, please visit http://betterwork.org.
For more details please contact:
Arianna Rossi, Research and Policy Officer, Better Work
Tel: +41 22 799 7108
Email: rossi@ilo.org