Inditex and the ILO reinforce their joint projects to spread best labour practices in the garment industry

• Inditex’s Chairman and CEO, Pablo Isla, and the Director-General of the International Labour Organization, Guy Ryder, hold an executive meeting in Geneva in which explored the progress made to date on the initiatives Inditex and the ILO are collaborating on in China, India, Brazil, Indonesia, Turkey and Cambodia, among other countries.

The Chairman and CEO of Inditex, Pablo Isla, met with the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Guy Ryder, with the goal of reinforcing the projects on which the two entities are collaborating with the aim of enhancing labour conditions at all levels of the garment sector value chain.

During the meeting, Mr. Isla stressed “Inditex’s firm commitment to the ILO conventions, on which our Code of Conduct for Manufacturers and Suppliers is based, and to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, especially those related to decent working conditions”. He went on to highlight the projects on which Inditex is already working with the ILO on in countries such as China, Turkey, Cambodia, Brazil and Indonesia, particularly those on which the two entities have decided to step up their efforts.

In the words of the Director-General of the International Labour Organization, the entity’s collaboration with Inditex is an example of a significant public-private partnership between a United Nations organism and a major multinational. According to Guy Ryder, it represents a new milestone in the promotion of best labour practices in the global apparel industry.

Inditex and the ILO work together on a number of projects. One of the most noteworthy initiatives is Better Work, a platform which brings together various stakeholders (government, apparel brands and manufacturers, unions and workers, as well as the ILO itself) to enhance labour conditions in the garment industry and boost the apparel sector’s competitiveness.

Better Work strives to have a direct impact through the projects carried out in each country while fostering an industry lobby, shared know-how and third-party agreements in parallel. Inditex has been working with the Better Work platform since 2007, specifically on reinforcing labour rights in factories in Cambodia, Vietnam and Indonesia.

In addition, Inditex is working with the ILO on its Score Programme, targeted at improving management systems and working conditions in factories in China and Turkey.