The Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, a platform of the North American buyers, has completed inspection that resulted in full or partial closure of 10 out of 587 RMG units.
According to the final report of the Alliance published yesterday on its website, the Alliance completed inspections of all 587 factories and identified 10 factories flawed on fire, electrical and structural ground from which its members source products.
The report also said 50% RMG factories from which Alliance brands source products are now in remediation while 1.1 million workers trained in basic fire safety of which 97.8% can correctly identify what to do in case of fire.
The Alliance said it has $100 million affordable capital available to factory owners and $5 million support available to displaced factory workers and as it compensated 1,000 displaced workers.
The Alliance conducted a comprehensive baseline survey and a limited sample follow-up survey among the garment workers assessing their knowledge on fire safety before and after the Alliance-led trainings.
The survey findings showed workers, who could correctly identify what to do in case of a fire, increased from 39% to 98%, and those who could correctly identify the five most common fire hazards increased from 2% to 51% following the basic fire safety training.
“Together, the Alliance and our partners are steadily achieving progress that will have a lasting, positive impact on factory workers, the ready-made garment industry and the country’s economy as a whole,” said Ellen Tauscher, former U.S. Congresswoman and Alliance Independent Chair.
“Much work remains to be done, but we are steadfastly committed to staying the course, working in partnership, ensuring transparency and helping achieve a new, sustainable standard for safe workplaces in Bangladesh,” she added.
“Substantial challenges must be overcome in order to achieve our goals in the Bangladesh garment industry,” said Rabin Mesbah, managing director of the Alliance. As the hard work of remediation now begins, it is incumbent upon all stakeholders to do their part to ensure a safer industry for everyone, he added.
The Alliance, a plat form of 26 brands and retailers, had committed to improve safety standard, including fire, electrical and structural safety after the collapse of Rana Plaza, which killed 1,135 workers and injured over 2,500 last year.
