"La Constancia" by Regina Giménez, a tribute to the Catalan labor union that called a general strike in 1913 in protest of the conditions for female and child workers in the textile industry. latitudes-flickr/Flcikr. (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Last June marked the first time that global supply chains (GSCs) were discussed at the International Labour Conference, the International Labour Organisation's flagship annual event. At the time, some wondered whether the simple fact that GSCs were an item on the ILO’s agenda constituted a victory in itself, while others remained unconvinced of the feasibility of meaningfully re-charting globalisation's current path.
Since then, calls for greater accountability and labour standards have only increased. For example, Human Rights Watch sent an open letter last April with over 70 organisational signatories to the European Commission, demanding that they impose greater transparency measures in the garment supply chain. In May the G20 Labour and Employment Ministers issued the 2017 LEMM Declaration, an important – though arguably small – step towards promoting sustainable supply chains.
