|
|
NEWSLETTER 14, JULY 2001
Reading List
|
 Workers'
tool or PR ploy?
"Workers' tool or PR ploy? A guide to codes of international
labour practice" is a new publication written by researcher
Ingeborg Wick, of the SÜDWIND Institut (German CCC)
This very comprehensive and easily readable 100 page overview
of different codes and monitoring models also includes a chapter
written by Dwight Justice (ICFTU) and Neil Kearney (ITGLWF).
This useful brochure profiles and compares the Ethical Trading
Initiative (ETI), Fair Labor Association (FLA), Social Accountability
International (SAI), Worker Rights Consortium (WRC), and the Clean
Clothes Campaign. It also outlines the socio-economic context
of codes and other trade-related initiatives and contains an analysis
of the trade union perspective on codes of conduct by the International
Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the International
Textile, Garment & Leather Workers' Federation (ITGLWF).
Some of the key results of the comparison between the ETI, FLA,
SAI, WRC and CCC:
- Especially the CCC, but also the ETI, WRC and SAI have other
key instruments besides their codes of conduct. These tools include
worker education, legal measures and direct solidarity action.
- Stakeholder participation in the FLA which lacks union partners,
is less representative than in the other four code models.
- As opposed to brand certification, the SA 8000 standard shifts
the brunt of responsibility for improving working conditions from
transnational corporations to third world supplier factories.
- The set of social standards in the FLA chartar contains serious
flaws.
- The SA 8000 standard relies on commercial auditors whose ability
to handle labor problems has yet to be proved.
The brochure costs 10 German marks (about 5 US$) Please send
your orders to SÜDWIND, Lindenstr. 58-60, D 53721 Siegburg,
telephone ++49 - (0) 2241 - 53617, fax ++49 - (0) 2241 - 51308,
e-mail: wick.suedwind@t-online.de)
Multinational Coporations and International Law
Liablity of Multinational Corporations under International Law,
published in late 2000 and edited by Menno T. Kamminga (Professor
of Public International Law at Maastricht University) and Saman
Zia-Zarifi (Director of the Academic Freedom Program at Human
Rights Watch), contains an overview of human rights accountability-laws
of Multinational Enterprises. The is a useful book for campaigners
who want to explore the possibilities for bringing a multinational
to court. The book goes into several international approaches
for holding TNCs accountable for their deeds when operating abroad.
There is a section on the role of UNCTAD and on attempts by the
UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection
of Minorities to set up a Sessional Working Group on Transnational
Corporations. The last section is on domestic approaches to holding
corporations legally accountable. Litigation and court cases in
the US, England, the UK, and the Netherlands are all investigated.
The annexes provide valuable background on the most important
inititiatives in this field: the ILO declaration on Fundamental
Principles and Rights at Work, the ILO tripartite Dclaration of
Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy,
the OECD Declaration on International Investment and Multinational
Enterprises and the Howitt resolution on EU standards for European
enterprises operating in developing countries. In short, a very
interesting book, although it is all very juridical, but written
in a way that is accessible to people who don't have a background
in international.
Liability of Multinational Corporations under International Law
costs 113.50 euros and can be ordered from Kluwer Law International,
P.O. Box 85889, 2508 CN The Hague, Netherlands, telephone: +31-70-308-1552,
fax: +31-70-308-1515.
|
