Detail on Workers Rights 

Wages

Debenhams told us that, “[p]ayment of living wage is proving to be very complex.”  In contrast to its 2006 response, it agreed that national minimum wages are often too low, but in our meeting told us that it does not have a strategic plan to tackle the living wage issue.  It said it was only listening to the discussion on wages taking place within the ETI, but not participating actively.

“An added complication for Debenhams,” it said, “is that we are typically one of the smaller retailers placing orders in a factory at any one time.”  This means it is not so easy for it to influence working conditions or wages independently, it said.

Freedom of association

In 2006, Debenhams told us that it was “in detailed discussions with a third party provider with the intention of holding workshops relating to freedom of association,” working with Trade Unions “directly in countries such as Cambodia,” and “members of the ETI Occupational Health and Safety project which will be empowering workers to represent themselves on this important subject in China.”  It didn’t give us more information on any of these areas when we asked for it.

In 2007, Debenhams was not able to tell us of the outcomes of this work, and seems to have moved on from these projects, telling us instead that it has,
decided to focus its efforts on FOA through the ETI pilot project which has now developed in to the Decent Work project and through the Purchasing Practices project.  Both of these projects are in their early stages.

We are not sure to what extent these projects will actually focus on freedom of association.  Debenhams made no mention of worker training by local labour rights groups.

Monitoring and verification

Our conclusion

Overall a disappointing response from such a major retailer and longstanding ETI member.  We don’t have the impression of any kind of coherent plan to improve labour rights in its supply chain: on wages and verification it acknowledges the need for progress but seems to be sitting back and waiting; on freedom of association it seems to be grasping at straws.  We hope that the expansion of its CSR team will fix this.