Jack & Jones and Vero Moda owner Bestseller has signed up again to the International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry in Pakistan and Bangladesh, with the new pledge covering a six-year period, the longest yet.
The updated agreement, which is legally binding, “promotes and supports the development of safer workplaces” in those nations’ textile and apparel sectors.
Additionally, it stated that recent discussions amongst trade union signatories, representatives of other major global companies, and itself “have resulted in a new framework agreement [that] reaffirms our commitment to protecting and promoting the rights of the people working in our supply chain.”
Felicity Tapsell, Head of Responsible Sourcing at the giant Danish fashion group, said, “As a member of the International Accord’s steering committee, we’re proud of the work done with our key partners at IndustriAll Global Union and UNI Global Union, in developing this new agreement.”
The company has been a signatory since the agreement’s inception. Over the last ten years, 2,400 factories have had 56,000 factory assessments completed, and 140,000 health and safety issues have been fixed.
More than two million workers have received health and safety training, and all employees in factories covered by the Accord can report health and safety issues anonymously by calling a hotline.
