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FIRST ITEM ON THE AGENDA

Continuation of discussions concerning the
programme of work and mandate of the Working Party

Labelling child labour products: A preliminary study

1. During the 270th Session of the Governing Body, the Working Party on the Social Dimensions of the Liberalization of International Trade addressed, in a general discussion, various initiatives and practices relating to corporate codes of conduct and social labelling. It was agreed that further attention should be given at the present session to the preliminary study commissioned by the Office entitled Labelling child labour products.⁽¹⁾  Meanwhile, in keeping with the Working Party's request, the Office is preparing an analytic study of corporate codes of conduct and other external initiatives relating labour standards to commercial activity. The fuller study is to be completed for discussion in November 1998.

2. A previous note prepared by the Office described the preliminary study, Labelling child labour products.⁽²⁾  Unfortunately, financial limitations make it impossible to translate and reproduce the study in full. Instead, this paper highlights some of the study's general conclusions, and appended to it is the appendix to the study, entitled A synthesis of the six labelling initiatives. An article, based on the study and written by its author, which corresponds in material respects to the study but maintains a viewpoint independent of the Office, is also available.⁽³⁾ 

3. Part One of the study notes that social labelling exists in various contexts other than the six child labour labelling schemes under review. Brief mention is made of the following: eco-labelling and so-called "green" labels; fair trade labelling by which non-profit associations facilitate export market access to small producers; union labels, which still exist in a modified form and are exemplified by the "Buy Union" label used by the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union in the United States; national labels (Buy American, Made in France); and labels related to other aspects of labour standards, such as the "No Sweat" label now under discussion in the United States. The study notes that no major marketing survey has been done on social labelling generally, or any survey at all on child labour labels.

4. Without addressing the range of issues concerning corporate codes of conduct, the study suggests that codes of conduct, formulated with increasing frequency in the last few years, represent company-sponsored or industry-wide initiatives to promote economic and social improvements viewed as relevant to consumers and used, in some cases, as alternatives to social labelling schemes. The discussion notes the resultant publicity and financial benefits gained by corporate actors that bear a reputation for "good practices". The study notes that oversight mechanisms are normally of an internal nature, and individual non-governmental and international organizations have provided advice and technical help with some of those initiatives.

5. The study identifies four common features among social labelling initiatives: the use of a physical label on the product or by a retail establishment; outreach to consumers; oversight; and a levy on the product from the retailer or importer. Noted differences among the schemes include whether the label applies to a specific product or the retail establishment and, by implication, all products sold in those establishments; whether monitoring and oversight is conducted internally or externally; and what sort of aim(s) the scheme purports to achieve, which range from the total elimination of child labour from any production role to the improvement of working conditions for children.

6. The translated appendix analyses, among other criteria, the diverse social entities which have been involved, as initiators or participants, in the six social labelling programmes studied. A broad set of "actors" is identified, including workers themselves; producers and employers; importers and exporters (in situations of international trade or commerce); merchandisers and marketers; an organizational structure (often within non-profit consumer or citizens' organizations) with personnel willing to organize and publicize a labelling initiative; consumers; a general public; and supportive institutional and political actors.⁽⁴⁾  The relationship of the programmes to governmental and intergovernmental efforts is briefly noted, including copyright protection extended to the label under national and international law, national legislative and regulatory initiatives, and ILO and other relevant international standards. The effectiveness of the initiatives in achieving their social aims is left for further study.

7. The preliminary study addresses social initiatives in the specific context of child labour social labelling, and at a fixed point in time more than a year ago. Nonetheless, the fundamental lesson that appears to emerge from the study is that initiatives to promote some form of labour standards continue to proliferate outside the context of the ILO and in a variety of forms. In many cases, the initiators include social forces in industrialized countries operating in ways that may, but do not necessarily, encompass or reflect the bipartite dialogue between employers and workers. Rather, a significant set of stakeholders, including consumer associations and citizens organizations, are taking action, largely but not exclusively in the private sphere. These entities are appealing to public opinion as a means of guaranteeing conformity with principles devised largely by ad hoc private coalitions of interest and, in some cases, with reference to international standards or, more often, selected provisions thereof.

8. Further initiatives beyond those examined in the study continue to be brought to the attention of the Office by interested parties at a rapid rate. The Office will take into consideration any comments that may be made in relation to the preliminary study in preparing its analysis of relevant developments requested by the Working Party for its 272nd Session (November 1998).

Geneva, 12 March 1998.

Appendix

A synthesis of the six labelling initiatives

	RUGMARK	KALEEN	CARE & FAIR	STEP	DIP	ABRINQ
Year initiated	1994	1996 (not yet fully established)	1994	1995	1995	1995
Product or service labelled	Hand-knotted carpets	Hand-knotted carpets	Hand-knotted carpets	Hand-knotted carpets	Textiles and garments	Diverse
Producer countries	India & Nepal	India only	India & Nepal	India, Nepal, Pakistan	Kenya, India	Brazil
Industries targeted	Carpets only	Carpets only	Carpets only	Carpets only	Textiles and garments	Many
Label has international patent protection	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No
Label attached to individual item or displayed by retailer	Individual item, at time of export	Individual item, at time of export	Displayed by retailer on sales premises	Retail outlet	Item	Both
Dominant consumer	Germany and United States	Germany	Germany	Switzerland	Switzerland	Brazil
Other, competing labelling initiatives in same market	Care & Fair	Care & Fair, Rugmark	Rugmark	None	None	None
Aims at removing children completely from production	"100% Guaranteed Made Without Child Labour"	"Made Without Child Labour"	No	Gradually	Yes	Yes
Aims at improving working conditions for children in industry	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes
Aims at rehabilitation/schooling for child	Yes, has established some facilities	Has plans to do so	Yes, has established facilities	Yes	No	Yes
Operates mainly in producer or consumer country	Both	Producer	Both	Both	Both	Same country
Enjoys support of retailers in consumer countries	A few	No association includes many retailers	Yes, sponsoring	Somewhat	Somewhat	Yes
Is well known in principal consumer market	Somewhat	No	Yes	Somewhat	Somewhat	Somewhat
Sponsorship	Private foundation	National government	Retail trade association	NGOs	Private	Foundation
Has oversight board	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Receives financial support from local/national governments	Partly, Germany only	Yes	No	No	No	No
Receives other external financing	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes
Collects levies	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Performs on-site monitoring and inspections	Yes	No	No - oversight by importers during buying trips	Some	Yes	Yes
Has internal system of verification and control	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
Permits some independent monitoring by other agencies	Yes	Yes	Not known	Not known	Not known	No
Programme adherence voluntary for producers	Yes	No, all exports from India must carry label	No, must comply to maintain relation with German member importers	Yes	Yes	Yes
Penalties for violations	De-licensing of producers	Not known	Loss of sales contracts	No	No	No

1. Hilowitz, J: Labelling child labour products: A preliminary study, ILO, Geneva, 1997. The study is available in its original language, English, through the ILO Publications Office.

2. GB.270/WP/SDL/1/3.

3. "Social Labelling to combat child labour: Some considerations", in International Labour Review, Vol. 136, No. 2 (Summer 1997), pp. 215-232.

4. See Labelling child labour products, Parts 2 and 3.