On October 7, the Asia Floor Wage (AFW) Alliance launched its campaign to establish a floor on the race to the bottom in the Asian garment industry.  With dozens of events around the globe and the release of a new report, Stitching a Decent Wage Across Borders, the Alliance put forth its demand for a unified living wage for Asian garment workers.  

The report outlines the reasons behind poverty wages in the garment industry and describes the role of brand-named companies and giant retailers, who ultimately wield the most power in determining wages.  Workers’ efforts to increase wages often lead garment brands and retailers to relocate production elsewhere, sending the message that fighting for better wages can put jobs in jeopardy.  

Meanwhile, governments fear that statutory minimum wages that meet living wage standards would make it more difficult to attract international business.  Instead of ensuring that citizens are paid decently, governments seek to lure business by offering tax reductions, exemptions from labour laws, or freezes in the legal minimum wage.

The Asia Floor Wage seeks to remedy this problem by demanding a regional wage that eliminates competition between workers in different Asia countries, where 60% of garment production takes place.  

Calculating the Asia Floor Wage

The Asia Floor Wage Alliance developed criteria for a living wage based on 3000 calories of food per adult and a ratio of 1:1 between food and non-food costs.  The wage provides enough for a standard family of 2 adults and 2 children.  To calculate the living wage across borders, the Alliance relies on a hypothetical currency called ‘purchasing power parity’ (PPP$).  Rather than just convert currencies, PPP can be used to calculate how much money is needed for a person in one country to purchase the same “basket of goods” as a person in another country.  (See table.)

The AFW Alliance includes a wide range of labour organisations from India, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, China and Hong Kong, as well as the Clean Clothes Campaign and other NGOs, unions, solidarity groups and researchers in Europe and the United States.  

The launch of the AFW Campaign, which received international press coverage, included events in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, and Hong Kong, among other places, and was mirrored by the CCC’s Living Wage Action week in Europe.