Bangladesh: inspection of 1106 factories completed

The Accord on Building and Fire Safety announced last week that the

initial inspections of factories that produce ready-made garments for Accord company signatories have been completed within the agreed timeline of September 2014.

Out of the 1106 factories inspected, over 400 Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) have been finalised by the factories and company signatories and were approved by the Accord's chief safety inspector Brad Loewen.

“We have found safety hazards in all factories, which was to be expected. The safety findings have ranged from minor to significant. The Accord team is now working intensively with factory owners, brands and labour colleagues to ensure the safety findings are corrected. The CAPs are paramount to this as they provide the remedial measures which must be taken to ensure an acceptably safe working environment,” said Loewen.

Overall, more than 80,000 safety issues had been identified that needed to be resolved. As the Accord mentioned in an update on its website, many of the corrective actions such as reducing weight loads and adhering to load management plans have already been implemented and are being monitored. The Accord inspections have also identified more substantial safety requirements such as installing fire doors and automated fire alarm systems, establishing fire protected exits from factory buildings, and strengthening of columns in the buildings.

Though for most inspected factories, it was possible to continue production while the needed repairs were carried out, in 17 cases, a temporary evacuation of the premises was necessary as the Accord inspections found that "the structural integrity of the building fell below an acceptable level of safety". After around 110 inspections, immediate actions were required to bring the factories above the accepted safety levels to continue occupancy and production.

“The next phase of the Accord will focus on the implementation and monitoring of the corrective action plans and rolling out the training and worker participation program – including establishing credible labour-management occupational safety and health committees at the factory level,” said Alan Roberts, executive director for international operations about future actions.

Since the signing of the agreement in May 2013, more than 180 global garment brands and retailers and global and Bangladeshi trade unions have signed the Accord, among them industry giants like Tesco, Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury's, H&M, Inditex, C&A and others.