Fashion and Workers' Rights: Progress and Gaps Since Rana Plaza

Ten years after the Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh, which killed over 1,100 people, the fashion industry has made some progress in worker safety but significant gaps remain. Over 7,000 garment factories operate in Bangladesh, the world's second-largest apparel exporter after China. The disaster prompted binding agreements like the 2013 Fire and Building Safety Accord, signed by European brands including Inditex (Zara, Pull&Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara Home, Uterqüe), Primark, and H&M, which requires protocols and prohibits brands from severing ties with non-compliant suppliers. The less binding Bangladesh Worker Safety Alliance was signed by North American brands Walmart, Gap, and Target. Since 2013, 56,000 inspections have been conducted in 2,400 factories, correcting over 140,000 issues. In 2021, the International Accord extended to Pakistan with 45 signatories. However, American companies like Levi's, Gap, and Amazon have not signed any agreement. Over 5,000 Bangladeshi factories remain unprotected, and 40 million workers in Southeast Asia face precarious conditions. Recent incidents include an April 2023 fire at a Karachi garment factory that killed four firefighters and injured nearly a dozen. Commemorative vigils for Rana Plaza are held online and in Dhaka, London, and New York.