Fair Wear keeps working on possible solutions in Myanmar

The Dutch research organisation SOMO published a report on labour conditions in Myanmar which provides an insight in the garment industry in the country. FWF is aware of the high risks in Myanmar that are mentioned in the report and works actively together with its member companies to try to tackle those risks.

Resolving problems
Some FWF members are linked to factories in the SOMO report where problems were found. As this situation illustrates, even brands that have been very active in reducing risks in their supply chain cannot guarantee that its supply chain is 100% fair. In high-risk countries like Myanmar, the risk of serious problems is always present, in all garment supply chains.

However, clothing brands have a duty to ensure that their clothing is produced under good conditions and to resolve problems with the factory when they occur. And that is exactly what FWF member brands are trying to do. FWF members that source in Myanmar are addressing problems head-on, together with the factories they are working with.

List of suppliers online
FWF requires its members to be transparent about which factories in Myanmar they work with. FWF publishes and regularly updates this list of factories. It’s quite unusual to be this transparent, and these brands show courage in letting critical organisations evaluate their effort to improve working conditions.  FWF annually publishes a report on each brand’s performance, including information on how well they addressed the specific risks in countries like Bangladesh, Turkey and Myanmar.

Fair Wear Foundation welcomes efforts to show consumers the conditions under which their clothes might be made. However, FWF chose to focus on possible solutions. FWF brands are doing better than average when it comes to taking responsibility for the workers who make their clothes and addressing issues such as those found in the SOMO report.

For more information about the garment industy in Myanmar, read FWF’s Myanmar country study (2016).