Sarah Labowitz '04 pens op-ed on $250 million commitment to factorites in Bangladesh

On July 10, American brands, led by Wal-Mart and Gap, created the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety. Like the Accord, the Alliance adopts a collective workplace safety standard and auditing plan and makes funds available for remediation of safety threats. Together, the plans encompass financial commitments of almost $250 million, plus up to an additional $100 million in low-cost loans to help pay for building upgrades.

I spoke with one factory owner whose small operation relies on subcontracts and is located in rented space in a mixed-use building. Two and a half months after the collapse of Rana Plaza, the landlord still has not received a credible building safety inspection. This factory embodies the heart of the problem of factory safety in Bangladesh, and the owner knows it. He told me that with a modest investment of $5,000 – $10,000, he could upgrade his fire safety equipment and electrical wiring, and renovate his toilet and water facilities, which workers had been asking for.