Mechanisms of labour exploitation: the case of Pakistan

Abstract

Purpose The issue of exploitative labour practices has been a persistent and recurring problem in the textile and garment industry. Despite increased media, policy and practitioners attention the evidence base remains unexplored. The International Labour Organization (ILO) has acknowledged the presence of labour exploitation in global supply chains because of private sectors’ employment practices. The purpose of this study is to apprehend views of multilevel stakeholders to explore the nature and driving mechanisms of exploitation. Design/methodology/approach Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 76 respondents from 25 factories from 3 cities of Pakistan i.e. Faisalabad, Lahore and Gujranwala. Convenient and snowball sampling techniques were used because of the complexity of research settings. Transcribed data was analysed with the help of NVivo. Findings Drawing on qualitative evidence, the study reveals that workers experience a range of exploitation at the workplace, which is unlikely to fall within the scope of severe exploitation. The findings reveal that three types of exploitation exist in Pakistan’s textile and garment industry such as financial, physiological and psychological. Power inequality is the foundation and a fundamental cause of the endurance of exploitation. The study found three mechanisms that facilitate the endurance of exploitation, i.e. distance, profit and oppression. Research limitations/implications The study contributes to supply chain literature by exemplifying power inequality. It is crucial for the government to step up efforts to stipulate a minimum wage rate in the textile and garment industry to alleviate labour exploitation. The findings provide motivation for policy and decision-makers to implement incremental changes to global supply chains to protect the rights and welfare of workers, according to the standards of social accountability 8000, the ILO and other world trade stakeholders. Originality/value This study argues that the international and local instruments do not specifically address the severe labour exploitation in Pakistan textile and garment industry. Therefore, the need arises to develop a specific instrument to address the problem. In the absence of such an instrument, there is a piecemeal approach by international and local bodies towards the regulation of labour exploitation.

Assessment of Both Personal and Professional Aspects to Measure Job Satisfaction Levels among Garment Workers: Empirical Evidence from a Developing Country

“…The results further suggested that overall job satisfaction was pointedly higher among the satisfied respondents than that of the dissatisfied respondents. Several investigators, i.e., Asikullah [ 22 ]; Shan et al [ 73 ]; Syed and Mahmud [ 19 ]; Arslan [ 80 ]; Hechanova and Manaois [ 81 ]; Shi, Gordon and Tang [ 89 ] also found a significant impact of professional aspects on the overall job satisfaction of the respondents, which inveterate the outcomes of the present study.…”

“…According to Hu et al [ 78 ] and Haleem et al [ 79 ], factors such as management chic, salary, working conditions, opportunities for training, performance reviews, and participation in decision-making have a big impact on how satisfied workers are with their jobs. Arslan [ 80 ] combines three types of exploitation—financial, physical, and psychological—that lead to labor unhappiness in Pakistan’s garment industry. According to Hechanova and Manaois [ 81 ], employee attitudes in the Philippines as well as organizational norms and controls are all influenced by ethical leadership that is subject to job satisfaction.…”

Are low- and middle-income countries profiting from fast fashion?

“…The ideology of “living wage” in the garment industry has been a concern for International Labor Organization (ILO) for a long time and yet to date no major brand can validate that all the workers in their supply chain earn a living wage. Despite increased media, policy and practitioner's attention the evidence base remains unexplored the exploitation of human resources exists within the garment value chain (Cockbain et al , 2018; Arslan, 2020). The Clean Clothes Campaign in their research found that the workers' wages represent only a fraction of what consumers pay for the clothes because of deep-rooted structural power dynamics.…”

Influential Factors Under Labor Law Adhere to ILO: An Analysis in the Fish Farming Industry of Bangladesh

“…As labor abuse is a common phenomenon experienced in the background of developing countries, my stance to use interpretative phenomenological approach (Arslan, 2020; Smith & Shinebourne, 2012) that creates a room to discuss the factors that influence the fishers’ mind rather than generate general theory.…”