Activities of Adam SZEJNFELD related to 2016/2140(INI)
Plenary speeches (2)
EU flagship initiative on the garment sector (A8-0080/2017 - Lola Sánchez Caldentey) PL
EU flagship initiative on the garment sector (debate) PL
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on the EU flagship initiative on the garment sector PDF (417 KB) DOC (97 KB)
Amendments (26)
Amendment 14 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 a (new)
Citation 8 a (new)
- having regard to the cooperation agreement signed on 25 April 2016 by the President of Inditex, Pablo Isla, and the Secretary-General of IndustriALL Global Union, Jyrki Raina, on responsible management of the supply chain in the garment sector,
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 b (new)
Citation 8 b (new)
- having regard to the High-Level Conference on Responsible Management of the Supply Chain in the Garment Sector, held in Brussels on 25 April 2016,
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas economic development should go hand-in-hand with social justice; whereas the complexity and fragmentation of global value chains (GVCs) underline the needcall for complementary policies and flanking measures to avoid, address and mitigate theirto create value in supply chains and studies into the impact that organisational structures in the sector, the coordination system and the bargaining power of network members have on the development of these processes; having regard to the need for complemantary flanking measures to safeguard against potential adverse impacts and the need to ensure victims of human rights violations have an effective access to remedy;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas responsible management of GVCs is particularly relevant from a development perspective, as the most flagrantvery serious violations of human and labour rights and environmental pollution tend tofrequently occur in the producer countries that often face significant challenges in terms of sustainable development and growth for, affecting the most vulnerable;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas most human rights violations in the garment sector areconcern various aspects of labour- rights related and include the denial of workers fundamental right to join or form a union of their choosing and bargain collectively in good faith; whereas this has led to widespread labour rights violations ranging from poverty wages, wage theft, unsafe workplaces, and sexual harassment,, in particular the impossibility of association in trade unions and employees’ organisations, making it difficult to guarantee that workers can enjoy their fundamental rights in the workplace; whereas there are cases not only of violations of law but also of injury to precarious workputation and human dignity;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas initiatives led by the private sector, such as codes of conduct, labels, self-assessments and social audits, have not proven to be at aprovide relevant frameworks for cooperation on issues such as health and safety at work, but are not fully effective over the last 20 years in terms of increasing workers’ rights in the garment supply chainin achieving a real improvement in workers’ rights;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the specific characteristics of the garment sector value chains, such as geographically dispersed stages of the production process, low prices, short lead times, subcontracting and short-term buyer-supplier relationships are conducive to reducing visibility and transparency over an enterprise’s supply chain and to increasing the risks of human rights and labour abuses and of environmental damage; whereas transparency is a prerequisite for a company’s accountability and responsible consumption; whereas the consumer has the right to knowclear rules for determining where a piece of clothing was produced, and in which social and environmental conditions should be laid down;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G a (new)
Recital G a (new)
Ga. whereas guaranteeing consumers the right to reliable, transparent and relevant information on the sustainability of production will help to bring about lasting change in supply chain traceability and transparency in the garment sector;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I
Recital I
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
J. whereas the garment sector is the sector which has the most sustainability initiatives in progress; whereas few some existing initiatives reach the scale needed to make a significant impacthave helped to improve the situation in the garments sector and therefore efforts should also be continued at European level;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K a (new)
Recital K a (new)
Ka. whereas there is an obligation on producer countries in particular to create appropriate legal and economic conditions for businesses to operate;
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K b (new)
Recital K b (new)
Kb. whereas action to improve the situation of workers employed in the garment sector should be reasonable and proportionate so that it does not lead to a dramatic decline in profitability, which could mean the loss of jobs, an increase in unemployment and the impoverishment of society in producer countries;
Amendment 94 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Calls for the Commission to be committed to promoting binding and non- negotiable human rights and social and environmental clauses in the negotiation of international agreements; regrets that current human rights clauses in free trade agreements and other economic partnership agreements are usually not respectednot always fully respected by the signatory states;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the Commission to present a legislative proposal on bindingcomprehensive programme designed to ensure the more effective implementation of due diligence obligations for supply chains in the garment sector aligned with OECD guidelines and internationally agreed standards on human rights and social and environmental standards; this proposalgramme should focus on the core problems garment workers face (occupational health and safety, a living wage, freedom of association, sexual harassment and violence) and should address the following matters: key criteria for sustainable production, transparency and traceability, including collection of data and tools for consumer information, due diligence checks and auditing, access to remedy; gender equality, supply-chain due diligence reporting; awareness raising; notes, however, with concern that a lot more needs to be done and urges the Commission to take further actions which have a direct impact on workers’ lives;
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Welcomes the cooperation agreement concluded between Inditex and IndustriALL Global Union – which together represent 50 million workers in 140 countries – on improving supply chain management in the garment sector; emphasises that the future of the garment sector is dependent on improving sustainable productivity and traceability so as to ensure the effective identification of the processes taking place throughout the value chain, which will make it possible to identify and introduce improvements;
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Calls on the Commission to bring forward clear guidelines for all stakeholders – especially businesses – on the relationship between competition policy and due diligence obligations, in accordance with OECD guidelines;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Reiterates its call on the Commission to extendpromote corporate social responsibility and binding due diligence initiatives beyond existing frameworks for the garment sector so as to ensure that the EU and its trading partners and operators live up to the obligation to respect both human rights and the highest social and environmental standards;
Amendment 134 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Urges the Commission to deliver on its objective to foster improvements in the ready-made garment sector, including through a strong gender focus; calls on the Commission to make gender equalitythe empowerment of women and the enhancement of women’s rights a central focus of its flagship legislative initiative;
Amendment 142 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls on the Commission to promote actively the use of ecological and sustainably managed raw materials and to promote enthusiastically the re-use and recycling of garments and textiles through specific provisions in its flagship legislative initiatinitiative; calls on the Member States and European businesses to increase research and development funding with regard to the recycling of clothing, because the recycling of fibres is still very expensive;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Calls on the Commission to put in place specific measures for small and medium-sized European enterprises to have access to financing for tools to invest in the sustainability and fairness of their supply chains by, inter- alia, supporting match- making businessbusiness cooperation platforms to connect them with fair trade and ethical fashion importers and suppliers in the EU and in its partner countries;
Amendment 157 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Emphasises that because SMEs have fewer resources, action must be taken to ensure that the administrative and financial obligations imposed on them do not represent a disproportionate burden;
Amendment 160 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Believes that it is crucial to ensure increased access to information on the conduct of enterprises; considers it fundamental to introduce a mandatoryn effective reporting system and due diligence for EU companies that outsource their production to third countries; believes that responsibility should extend throughoutthis should apply to the entire supply chain, including sub- contractors in the formal and informal economy, and commends existing efforts to this effect; believes, however, that the EU is best placed to develop a common framework through legislation on mandatory transnational due diligence and supply chain transparency and traceability;
Amendment 168 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Stresses the need for comprehensive data on corporate sustainability performance; in this context, the elaborationcalls for the establishment of a common definitions and standards forframework for, and a harmonised approach to, the collection, comparison and assessment of statistical data notably on imports, and welcomes the holistic approach of the Higg Index in measuring enterprises’ environmental, social and labour impacts;
Amendment 170 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Emphasises the importance of labour inspections and social audits in the clothing and footwear supply chain; takes the view that too often these only show the situation at the time the inspection is carried out; recommends that further action be taken to improve inspections and audits, including training for inspectors and the approximation of inspection standards and methods via cooperation with the garment industry and producer countries;
Amendment 180 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Emphasises that producer country governments must be able to implement international standards and norms, including drawing up, implementing and enforcing appropriate legislation, particularly in the area of establishing the rule of law and combating corruption; calls on the Commission to support producer countries in this area under the EU’s development policy;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Warmly welcomes the work initiated in the preparation of a binding UN Treaty on Business and Human Rights which it is believed will enhance social corporate responsibility, including in the garment sector; regrets any obstructive behaviour in relation to this process, and calls on the EU and its Member States to engage constructively in these negotiations;