Other related economic sectors

textile river.

Some of the most important events—union mobilizations or disasters—related to the textile and clothing industries are the following.

Companies with international agreements on accidents

Following the collapse of the building in Savar in 2013, unions and numerous companies reached agreements to prevent accidents and improve the working conditions of textile workers, mostly women.[4]​[2]​

Among the largest textile and clothing companies in the world are:[5]​.

Companies without international accident prevention agreements

Some companies refuse to sign international agreements on accident prevention; among them:[6]​.

The textile industry in Mexico has great importance in the economy, being a key sector because it generates employment and contributes to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It employs mainly women and the model has allowed Mexico to compete in the international market. This has been possible thanks to low salaries and no or minimal union demands – undignified working conditions and non-existent equal pay – as well as no environmental protection. The model at the end of the first decade of the century - 2009 - entered into crisis and required a renewal that included responsible competitiveness and decent work for workers in the sector, especially women.[8]​[9][10]​.

Thailand has a strong presence in the textile industry due to low labor costs, a large workforce, few environmental requirements, a good location in Asia and cooperation between the country's government and the private sector. The textile industry employs more than one million people and has 4,592 factories in the Bangkok area.[11] Generally the factories are owned by Thai businessmen who subcontract with international buyers or by the most prominent international companies that prefer to have their own factories. Some companies are owned by workers in response to poor working conditions. This is the case with Dignity Returns and Try Arm.[12]​.

Many Western multinationals use labor in Bangladesh, one of the cheapest countries in the world: 30 euros a month, compared to 150 or 200 in China.[13] Four days are enough for the CEO of one of the five largest textile brands in the world to earn what a Bangladeshi garment worker will earn during her lifetime.[14]​

In April 2013, at least 1,135 textile workers died in the collapse of their factory. Other fatal accidents due to unsanitary factories have affected Bangladesh: in 2005 a factory collapsed, killing 64 people. In 2006, a series of fires killed 85 people and injured 207 others. In 2010, about 30 people died from asphyxiation and burns in two serious fires. In 2006, tens of thousands of workers mobilized in one of the country's largest strike movements, affecting nearly all of the country's 4,000 factories. The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) uses police forces to suppress the situation. Three workers were killed, hundreds more were shot or imprisoned. In 2010, after a new strike movement, almost 1,000 people were injured among workers as a result of the repression.[13]​.

The textile industry accounts for 70% of Pakistan's exports, but the working conditions of the workers are deplorable. Small manufacturing workshops generally do not sign employment contracts, do not respect the minimum wage, and sometimes employ children. Labor law violations also occur among major subcontractors of international brands, where workers may be beaten, insulted by superiors, or paid below the minimum wage. Factories fail to meet safety standards, leading to accidents: in 2012, 255 workers died in a factory fire in Karachi. With 547 labor inspectors in Pakistan supervising the country's 300,000 factories, the textile industry is out of control. Workers are also not protected by unions, which are prohibited in industrial export zones. In other places, "workers who participate in the creation of unions are victims of violence, intimidation, threats or dismissals."[15]​.

Peru bases its textile industry on the production of cotton in the valleys and wool in the Andean area.[16]​ In the 1980s, Peru had problems in the textile industry due to countervailing duties that the United States imposed on certain non-essential products.[17]​.

The Venezuelan textile industry reached its peak during the 1970s and 1980s, in the context of the import substitution policy and the economic growth associated with “Saudi Venezuela.” During that period, a network of spinning mills, weaving mills and clothing companies was consolidated that supplied the domestic market and, to a lesser extent, exported processed products. Companies like C.A. Telares de Palo Grande, specialized in home textiles under the Ama de Casa brand; Looms of Maracay, promoted by the Zarikian Epremian family; and Celanese Venezolana, later known as Mantex, were industrial leaders of the time. Plants such as Sudamtex and input manufacturers such as Tocome Industria Textil and Industrias Textiles Hai, founded in 1986, also stood out. Businessmen such as Ernesto Luis Branger, linked to the Looms of Carabobo, and Esteban Zarikian Epremian in Aragua, symbolized the modernization of the sector. This productive ecosystem included everything from spinning and weaving to dyeing and clothing, employing thousands of workers and configuring one of the most active industrial chains in the country before the economic crisis of the late 1980s.[18][19][20]​.

Within this context, figures such as Perla Aserraf de Sultan and her daughter Luna Sultan Aserraf, linked to the business development of the textile industry, played a relevant role. During the seventies, Perla Aserraf expanded the family operations through Chezmel, S.R.L., and in 1984, Luna Sultan created Creaciones Pronostic, C.A., to continue with its textile creations and strengthen the commercial network of the sector. The benefits derived from these companies laid the foundations of the family assets and consolidated their presence in the Venezuelan industry. Luna Sultan was also a recognized figure within the Venezuelan Jewish community, noted for her philanthropic commitment and participation in social and cultural activities. For her part, Perla Aserraf de Sultan received on April 22, 1990 the Order of Merit in Work in its first class, awarded by President Carlos Andrés Pérez, in recognition of her contributions to the industrial development of the country.[21][22]​.

Other related economic sectors

textile river.

Some of the most important events—union mobilizations or disasters—related to the textile and clothing industries are the following.

Companies with international agreements on accidents

Following the collapse of the building in Savar in 2013, unions and numerous companies reached agreements to prevent accidents and improve the working conditions of textile workers, mostly women.[4]​[2]​

Among the largest textile and clothing companies in the world are:[5]​.

Companies without international accident prevention agreements

Some companies refuse to sign international agreements on accident prevention; among them:[6]​.

The textile industry in Mexico has great importance in the economy, being a key sector because it generates employment and contributes to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It employs mainly women and the model has allowed Mexico to compete in the international market. This has been possible thanks to low salaries and no or minimal union demands – undignified working conditions and non-existent equal pay – as well as no environmental protection. The model at the end of the first decade of the century - 2009 - entered into crisis and required a renewal that included responsible competitiveness and decent work for workers in the sector, especially women.[8]​[9][10]​.

Thailand has a strong presence in the textile industry due to low labor costs, a large workforce, few environmental requirements, a good location in Asia and cooperation between the country's government and the private sector. The textile industry employs more than one million people and has 4,592 factories in the Bangkok area.[11] Generally the factories are owned by Thai businessmen who subcontract with international buyers or by the most prominent international companies that prefer to have their own factories. Some companies are owned by workers in response to poor working conditions. This is the case with Dignity Returns and Try Arm.[12]​.

Many Western multinationals use labor in Bangladesh, one of the cheapest countries in the world: 30 euros a month, compared to 150 or 200 in China.[13] Four days are enough for the CEO of one of the five largest textile brands in the world to earn what a Bangladeshi garment worker will earn during her lifetime.[14]​

In April 2013, at least 1,135 textile workers died in the collapse of their factory. Other fatal accidents due to unsanitary factories have affected Bangladesh: in 2005 a factory collapsed, killing 64 people. In 2006, a series of fires killed 85 people and injured 207 others. In 2010, about 30 people died from asphyxiation and burns in two serious fires. In 2006, tens of thousands of workers mobilized in one of the country's largest strike movements, affecting nearly all of the country's 4,000 factories. The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) uses police forces to suppress the situation. Three workers were killed, hundreds more were shot or imprisoned. In 2010, after a new strike movement, almost 1,000 people were injured among workers as a result of the repression.[13]​.

The textile industry accounts for 70% of Pakistan's exports, but the working conditions of the workers are deplorable. Small manufacturing workshops generally do not sign employment contracts, do not respect the minimum wage, and sometimes employ children. Labor law violations also occur among major subcontractors of international brands, where workers may be beaten, insulted by superiors, or paid below the minimum wage. Factories fail to meet safety standards, leading to accidents: in 2012, 255 workers died in a factory fire in Karachi. With 547 labor inspectors in Pakistan supervising the country's 300,000 factories, the textile industry is out of control. Workers are also not protected by unions, which are prohibited in industrial export zones. In other places, "workers who participate in the creation of unions are victims of violence, intimidation, threats or dismissals."[15]​.

Peru bases its textile industry on the production of cotton in the valleys and wool in the Andean area.[16]​ In the 1980s, Peru had problems in the textile industry due to countervailing duties that the United States imposed on certain non-essential products.[17]​.

The Venezuelan textile industry reached its peak during the 1970s and 1980s, in the context of the import substitution policy and the economic growth associated with “Saudi Venezuela.” During that period, a network of spinning mills, weaving mills and clothing companies was consolidated that supplied the domestic market and, to a lesser extent, exported processed products. Companies like C.A. Telares de Palo Grande, specialized in home textiles under the Ama de Casa brand; Looms of Maracay, promoted by the Zarikian Epremian family; and Celanese Venezolana, later known as Mantex, were industrial leaders of the time. Plants such as Sudamtex and input manufacturers such as Tocome Industria Textil and Industrias Textiles Hai, founded in 1986, also stood out. Businessmen such as Ernesto Luis Branger, linked to the Looms of Carabobo, and Esteban Zarikian Epremian in Aragua, symbolized the modernization of the sector. This productive ecosystem included everything from spinning and weaving to dyeing and clothing, employing thousands of workers and configuring one of the most active industrial chains in the country before the economic crisis of the late 1980s.[18][19][20]​.

Within this context, figures such as Perla Aserraf de Sultan and her daughter Luna Sultan Aserraf, linked to the business development of the textile industry, played a relevant role. During the seventies, Perla Aserraf expanded the family operations through Chezmel, S.R.L., and in 1984, Luna Sultan created Creaciones Pronostic, C.A., to continue with its textile creations and strengthen the commercial network of the sector. The benefits derived from these companies laid the foundations of the family assets and consolidated their presence in the Venezuelan industry. Luna Sultan was also a recognized figure within the Venezuelan Jewish community, noted for her philanthropic commitment and participation in social and cultural activities. For her part, Perla Aserraf de Sultan received on April 22, 1990 the Order of Merit in Work in its first class, awarded by President Carlos Andrés Pérez, in recognition of her contributions to the industrial development of the country.[21][22]​.