Primark

Download Primark's Submission Here

Responded to survey: yes

MSI involvement: yes, Ethical Trading Initiative [what's this?]

Grade 3: Can offer concrete examples of steps to develop and implement a living wage methodology in supplier base, but only in a few pilot projects. [what's this?]

Summary

Significant progress: Evidence of in-depth work with the ETI and local partners is apparent, pilot wage projects in Bangladesh and China, and homeworking research in India is also under way. We are pleased to see that Primark has started to deal seriously with these issues, however it still fails to acknowledge the extent to which its pricing and purchasing practices play a role in keeping wages low.

Position on living wages

Primark stressed that the issue of living wages was a ‘priority area.’

Position on freedom of association

It acknowledged that ‘there have historically been difficulties in deciding how to calculate living wages’ and noted that it had researched a number of different approaches to calculating and implementing them, concluding that ‘the negotiated approach is the
most practical and sustainable.’

To support this conclusion, Primark mentioned direct work with trade unions in Bangladesh and India, and an eduction project in Southern India in partnership with the NGO SAVE with the aim of increasing union membership.

Work so far on living wages

Primark has worked in Bangladesh to do a wage study and provide worker training in 16 factories, with NGO Nari Uddug Kendra in Dhaka. The programme aimed ‘...to improve labour standards and compliance with Code provisions that take longer to address, such as wages and hours. The program specifically includes training for workers on their rights, including wages and associational rights.’

Primark also mentioned its membership of the ETI Homeworking Group, now focusing on wages, which ‘helped us develop and roll-out clear guidelines for our suppliers who sub-contract to homeworking clusters.’

A wages project based in Bareilly, India undertaken by the ETI group was also listed.

Plans on living wages

Primark has started two pilot projects with factories in Bangladesh and China to “find ways to increase wages for workers.” Based on the strategy developed by the ETI Wages Group, the plan submitted included the following:
-Identification of local implementation partners including NGOs, and worker organisations.
-Consultation on ‘the expectations, design and timeline for the project with all stakeholders.’
-Data collection and evaluation
-Intervention in factories to include: participatory workshops with managers supervisors and workers to help find “shared solutions”, and training in HR, production planning and efficiency improvements. -Development of best practice guidelines for supply base.

Elsewhere Primark are planning two pilot wage projects on homeworking; one in Delhi with other ETI homeworking group members, and another independently in Tirupur. These projects will assess piecework rates and survey workers.

Other significant information

Primark has appointed an ethical director and is making efforts to increase ethical trade staff, noting that ‘the expected strength of the in-house ethical trade team by the end of 2009 will be 5 times what it was at the beginning of this year.’.

Our comments

Primark seem to have stepped up a gear over the last year as a result of media and campaign pressure. Their multi-stakeholder involvement is notable: members of six ETI groups and observers in a seventh, work with other brands on homeworking and evidence of a number of partnerships with NGOs and trade unions. We are happy to
see that Primark are engaging on the issue of homeworking and developing work to improve conditions in this area.

It is clear, however, that these plans are still at the fairly early planning stages and there are some important omissions in the work outlined so far. For example, although an effort is being made to increase freedom of association through projects with SAVE
and NUK, the living wage proposals for China and India have no clear plan to build in training on unions and encouragement of union building in the identified factories. In order to sustain the ‘negotiated approach’ long term, this work must become a priority.

Little is said in the submission of Primark’s purchasing practices, beyond mention of a reputation for paying suppliers promptly and some training for staff. Unless Primark is prepared to make some real changes to its buying practices and, more importantly, its
pricing, sustained improvements are going to be difficult to obtain.

The wage projects indicate a plan to roll-out findings to the supply base but there is no clear indication of how this will be achieved and how it will ensure living wages. After years of little engagement, Primark will need to continue its hard work to catch up with competitors.