Big brands reject Bangladesh factory safety plan

As Bangladesh reels from the deaths of hundreds of garment workers in a building collapse, the refusal of global retailers to pay for nationwide factory inspections is bringing scrutiny to an industry that has profited from a country notorious for its hazardous workplaces and subsistence-level wages.

After a factory fire killed 112 workers in November, clothing brands and retailers continued to reject a proposal to improve safety throughout Bangladesh’s $20bn (€15bn) garment industry. Instead, companies expanded a patchwork system of private audits and training that labour groups say improves very little in a country where official inspections are lax and factory owners have close relations with the government.

In the meantime, the number of deaths and injuries has mounted. In the five months since last year’s deadly blaze at Tazreen Fashions Ltd., there were 40 other fires in Bangladeshi factories, killing nine workers and injuring more than 660, according to a labour organisation tied to the AFL-CIO umbrella group of American unions.