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Social environment and standards at the work place in the garment industry

In May 2001 BGRF started the Social Environment and Standards Program, aimed at research, analysis and outlining of trends in Bulgarian garment industry.

 The activities under the Program started as part of the European Clean Clothes Campaign (ССС). Bulgaria was the first East European country joining the CCC. The support for the start of this program came mostly from the German CCC (Terre des Femmes), which were interested by the broad and deep involvement of Bulgarian garment industry in the extremely diversified production chains of transnational corporations (TNC), operating in the world market.
The initial research showed that the share of the shadow economy in the garment industry was much higher than the average for the country.

 Major results and conclusions:

• The existing gaps in the regulations open “doors” for violations. The low efficiency of the judicial bodies handicaps the real and in-time sanctioning of the violations;
• The main problem in administrative control is in the regulative and controlling function of the State. It’s necessary to find out the good middle between the over-regulation and not enough State interference;
• The level of legal protection of women in the Bulgarian legislation is insufficient in the sphere of labor. This creates the feeling of impunity for the foreign “investors” in the garment industry, where the female labor is predominant.

As a result of the development of this program, a new NGO was registered in the beginning of 2002 as a Bulgarian CCC partner: The BEPA (the Bulgarian-European Partnership Association). The BGRF is a founding member of the Association.

01 March 2001