REGIONAL MEETING ON ORIENTATION
TO
CLEAN CLOTHES CAMPAIGN

Date              : 06.06.2003, Friday
Venue            : Hotel Chimney, Erode
Participants   : NGOS, Trade Union leaders and members, and Government Officials.

In continuation of the series of regional meeting on orientation to Clean Clothes Campaign, the fourth one day meeting of Non-Governmental Organizations, Trade Unions and Government Officials was held in Erode on June 6th 2003.

Welcome Address

Ms. M. Sarala, Director, WORD welcomed all the participants and asked to extend their support in the future course of action.

Introductory Note

Mr. A. Aloysius, Convener, Clean Clothes Campaign, Tamil Nadu shared that Clean Clothes Campaign was evolved in the Netherlands in the year 1990. When garment sales was peak in European countries, the women workers working in garment industries in Philippines stared to raise their voices against the exploitation of women work force. The workers of garment industry faced many problems like low ages, unhealthy working conditions, in equal pay for equal work, absence of adequate social security measures, etc. The Clean Clothes Campaign has its own code of conduct for the empowerment of the garment / textile workers. The code of conduct does not permit to employ child labourers and forced labourers and ensures the right to living wage, right to form associations and collective bargaining and voluntary choosing of employment.

Major portion of the foreign exchanges are earned from garment exports in our country. Even then, the are not paid with reasonable workers wages. Recently, the wage talks between the knitwear manufacturers associations and the trade unions in Tirupur became an endless one. No wage settlement was arrived even after holding many rounds of talks. This is one kind of unjust to the employees working in the garment / textile industries. International agencies like Fair Wear Foundation, Fair Labour Association are doing monitoring activities to ensure that garments are produced with 'made in dignity'. We have to take initiative to ensure the welfare of the employees working in garment industries.