Hi Hey there!,
This month, two exciting success stories came out of the sustainable fashion world. In a sector that is fraught with a seemingly insurmountable list of problems, it's pretty rare to have two wins in one month.
The first was the renewal of the Bangladesh Accord, a fire safety agreement that was first established after the Rana Plaza Factory collapse in 2013, which created a set of safeguards and brand commitments to ensure that safety standards in Bangladesh factories improved.
I wrote about it back in August, the same month it was set to expire, which would have left millions of garment worker's lives at risk. By the start of September, it had been renewed, with plans to expand it into other garment-producing countries. This new amendment to the Accord will be game-changing for garment workers not just in Bangladesh, but around the globe.
The second was the Garment Worker Protection Act, written into law in the state of California, which effectively bans brands from paying garment workers a piece-rate – i.e a few cents for every hem they sew or sleeve they attach. This means that LA's garment workers can finally be paid a minimum wage. You can read more on SB62 below.
It goes to show that collective action works. So often I see a sense of hopelessness and apathy over the multitude of distressing and overwhelming problems that the world is facing. People ask "What power do I have to make a difference?" But these successes didn't come about because brands chose to do the right thing unprompted, or governments decided to start legislating out of their moral duty to do so.
They came about because ordinary people got together and wrote emails, held protests, wrote stories and shared information on social media, putting pressure on business owners and political leaders until something changed. If that's not empowering, I don't know what is.
Until next time, hit the reply button to share your thoughts or feedback!
Meg X
