Development and Cooperation


	Contributions from the Column Tribune “Monday to Friday until 10pm” Catch 22 Difficult cooperation with fragile states 05/2006		“Monday to Friday until 10pm” Working conditions are harsh in the clothing factories which manufacture sportswear for the world market in special economic zones. In Nicaragua, the women’s movement “Movimiento de Mujeres Maria Elena Cuadra” is concerned with garment workers’ rights. In the case of El Salvador, the Clean Clothes Campaign and Puma have agreed to jointly monitor suppliers. [ By Sabine Broscheit ] More than 30,000 journalists are expected for the Football World Cup in Germany. More than three million visitors will follow the games live in German stadiums. Many companies, especially those in the sportswear industry, hope to profit from the event. Having paid € 45 million, Adidas is one of the “official sponsors” of the Fédération Internationale de Football (FIFA). The sports event this summer is expected to boost the sales of brand manufacturers, whose products will be seen on the bodies of athletes on TV screens all over the world. Less well-known than the brands are the production conditions for sporting goods and sports apparel. For financial reasons, even branded goods are not manufactured in the USA or Western Europe any more. From China to Romania to Central America, young women, in particular, toil in “world market factories”. Their wage is barely enough to survive on. In Latin America, these production facilities are called “maquilas”. The working conditions are harsh. Forced overtime is a matter of course – and job security is practically unheard of. Colleagues who form unions are laid off. The clothing industry is of great economic significance for Nicaragua. More than 40% of all exports are currently apparel exports. For several years, the government has focused on special economic zones, or “zonas francas”. With 70,000 jobs, apparel manufacturing has by far become the country’s most important industry in terms of employment. Around a million people in Nicaragua, in other words 20% of the population, depend either directly or indirectly on this sector. The boom of this sector in Central America started back in the 1990s. One reason was the World Trade Organisation’s quota system for textile products. Asian companies, in particular, which had exhausted the national quotas of their home countries, sought new manufacturing bases. From their point of view, Central America not only offered proximity to the US market, but even preferential access. The trend was encouraged by the USA’s “Caribbean Basin Initiative” (CBI), which grants tariff reductions to Central American and Caribbean apparel exports, under the condition that the materials used come from the USA. Today, more than a year after the WTO quotas have expired, Nicaragua has no need to fear competition from China. The monthly minimum wage for a garment worker in a maquila is a mere $74 for a 48-hour working week. This amount is only half as much as a garment worker in neighbouring El Salvador earns. It is only enough to buy half of the standard basket of consumer goods, with which a six-person family in Nicaragua can eke out an existence, according to official estimates. Moreover, that official $160-package does not factor in any costs for health care whatsoever, nor expenses for children’s school needs. Female workers toil for ten to twelve hours a day, only to earn enough for them and their families to barely survive – without being able to afford anything else. The women are often forced to work even longer hours. “I quit my last job in the maquila,” tells garment worker Manuela. “There was too much pressure. I had to work from Monday to Friday until ten o'clock at night. And then again from 7am on Saturday until 5 o'clock on Sunday morning.” She no longer slept at home and hardly ever saw her children. “Low wages and excessive working hours are the biggest problems in the maquila industry in Nicaragua,” reports a labour rights “promotora” (promoter) from the “Maria Elena Cuadra” (MEC) women’s movement. “Spot checks need to be carried out by the Labour Department in certain factories. But this doesn't happen.” The non-governmental organisation has been around for twelve years. It trains workers to become rights promoters who can give their colleagues in the factories advice and support in conflict situations. The initiative also draws up law proposals and exerts pressure on government agencies. The MEC was founded in 1994. Back then, a handful of women went into the slums and tried to inform the first women working in world market factories of their rights. They invited them to attend workshops in the MEC office. The strategy took into account that many women are afraid of becoming involved with trade unions, as doing so may become a reason for being fired. The MEC strategy worked out well. Today, its labour-rights promoters are present in almost all of Nicaragua’s 80 maquilas. Aside from topics such as employment law, workplace protection and security, the MEC also runs workshops for maquila workers on negotiation techniques and alternative methods of dispute mediation. These events are conducted by DIRAC, the Alternative Dispute Resolution Agency, which is run by Nicaragua’s Supreme Court. “In Nicaragua, industrial disputes must be resolved before they go before the labour court,” explains Dr. Oscar Morales, MEC lawyer and recognized dispute mediator. He complains that court cases tend to be drawn out and seldom bear fruit for the workers. For this reason, a centre for dispute mediation has been set up in the MEC. It is supported by funds from the Germany Development Ministry and the Christian Initiative Romero (CIR), a German NGO that has been active in Nicaragua for 25 years. The centre employs two lawyers specialised in labour relations. They advise maquila workers, and also start negotiations with the personnel departments of companies when disputes arise. Such arguments may, for example, relate to unpaid overtime or social security contributions not paid out correctly. The MEC deals with both individual and collective labour disputes. “However, in some cases, political pressure is indispensable,” says Sandra Ramos, head of MEC. “In such instances, the MEC does all it can to get the Ministry of Labour to act against the company that is violating workers’ rights.” The MEC goes to great lengths to ensure mediation results do not dilute national labour legislation. “It is necessary to both contribute to strengthening maquila workers locally, and to exert pressure on the managers as well as on the government, if we really want to improve labour conditions,” says Thomas Krämer, a CIR project coordinator in Nicaragua. “On the other hand, retail businesses in the advanced countries and brand name companies such as Adidas and Puma have to assume responsibility too.” In this context, Krämer also refers to the ongoing international discussion on corporate social responsibility (CSR). Agreement with Puma Apparel by Adidas and Puma is manufactured in Central America. Both companies rely on codes of conduct. These are catalogues of social standards which their suppliers – such as Central American maquilas, for example – must abide by. However, compliance with these rules is not normally monitored independently in the factories, as is called for by the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC), an alliance of independent organisations and trade unions from rich and poor countries. “In El Salvador and Honduras, there have time and again been cases of Adidas suppliers disregarding applicable national labour laws as well as standards of the International Labour Organisation (ILO),” reports Krämer, “ and the CCC and national NGOs have had to point out such shortcomings to Adidas, even though the company has its own code of conduct and allegedly monitors its rules.” An initiative, which the CCC started with Puma of Germany last year, looks more promising. It was undertaken in view of the up-coming World Cup event. Over a one-year period, the company and CCC will jointly monitor the working conditions in two factories near San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador. “The alliance is a pilot project,” says Martin Gänsler, Puma’s Vice Chairman. Maik Pflaum, who participates in the campaign for CIR, praises Puma as the first trendy sportswear company to get involved in the project. Both partners have agreed on the focus issues of directly and indirectly monitoring Puma suppliers in El Salvador. Overtime and remuneration are among them. Two things indicate that the pilot project is to be taken seriously. There will be some unannounced factory audits and independent local civil society organisations have been commissioned to carry them out. “These institutions enjoy the confidence of Puma and the CCC, and they are also respected by the employees.” Puma Manager Gänsler radiates optimism: “We will gain important insights for further developing our social standards. Cooperation with the CCC will help to increase our suppliers’ transparency and social responsibility.” Sabine Broscheit has lived with her family in Managua, Nicaragua since December 2003. She works in the Movimiento de Mujeres Maria Elena Cuadra (MEC) as a consultant seconded by EIRENE. Previously, she worked for 10 years as a Nicaragua project consultant for the Christian Initiative Romero in Muenster, Germany. sabine.broscheit@gmx.de On the internet: www.mec.org.ni www.ci-romero.de www.ci-romero.de/seiten/kampagnen/ccc/puma/pressem260106.html