Women's Views on News |
| Posted: 31 Mar 2016 01:40 PM PDT
Human rights group Liberty has announced the appointment of its new director – campaigner and barrister Martha Spurrier. Spurrier has an exceptional track record in defending people's rights, raising awareness of threats to fundamental freedoms and holding the state to account for neglect, abuse and mistreatment. She will join Liberty from Doughty Street Chambers, where she specialised in defending access to justice and the rights of women, children and disabled people. As a barrister, she has acted for bereaved families seeking answers after loved ones have died in state care, represented victims of rape, domestic violence and trafficking who have been failed by the police, and challenged attempts to curb press freedom and protest rights. Spurrier was previously a lawyer at mental health charity Mind and the Public Law Project (PLP), where she led a ground-breaking access to justice project. She has written widely on civil liberties and recently ran a high-profile campaign on the importance of the Human Rights Act in protecting ordinary people and their families. Founded in 1934 in response to the hunger marches, Liberty is a multi-disciplinary team that works together to protect civil liberties and human rights through campaigning, test litigation, parliamentary work and free advice and information. Martha Spurrier will lead Liberty’s team of campaigning, legal and policy experts at a critical time for human rights in the UK, as the organisation campaigns to: Stop the fatally flawed Investigatory Powers Bill, currently being rushed into law despite a consensus among campaigners, tech experts and parliamentary committees that it is not fit for purpose; Save the Human Rights Act, which the government has pledged to scrap; and Curb the government's discriminatory policing, immigration detention and asylum policies which threaten race relations and lack compassion. Shami Chakrabarti, who has been the director of Liberty for the last 12 years, said: "I am proud to be succeeded by such a brilliant young barrister – a woman so capable of taking her advocacy from our highest courts to the nation’s hearts. "With so many threats to refugee protection, online privacy and even our Human Rights Act, Liberty was never more needed, nor its leadership ever in better hands.” Spurrier said: “It's a huge privilege to join an organisation I've admired and supported for so long. "Liberty is a dynamic, dauntless and unshakeably principled force in the fight to protect our rights and freedoms. "It has been fearlessly confronting state power for more than eight decades – and its work is needed now more than ever. "In this fast-paced, complex, digital world the battle to defend our human rights faces new frontiers. "Liberty must continue to shine a light on abuses of power and protect equality, dignity and fairness in our society."  |
| Major let downs after claims of ethics Posted: 31 Mar 2016 01:18 PM PDT
A recent report on Marks and Spencer (M&S) and H&M has looked into the stories behind two leading high-street brands who have made claims to be ensuring a fair living wage is possible for their workers. The results? They have been found wanting. Low wages, slum housing and little evidence of change. Marks and Spencer, the UK's trusted supplier of pants and socks, and H&M, a favourite amonge the UK high street's low cost fashion stores, have both promoted their brands as different from the rest by claiming ethics set them apart. Through paper bags, clothes recycling, eco collections, and strategic press moments, these two brands have claimed to do things differently. Specifically, H&M and M&S have made headline commitments to ensuring a living wage is possible for workers in their supply chains. But when campaign group Labour Behind the Label analysed wages in M&S suppliers, they found that the impact of their commitment on real wages had been minimal. At M&S suppliers in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, workers continue to live in abject poverty. Looking to H&M's fair living wage work, Labour Behind the Label sought out H&M strategic suppliers in Cambodia to analyse their wage levels. Wages had increased, but not enough to meet a living wage level. Workers reported issues with short term contracts limiting their rights to holiday and bonuses. In some factories, piece rate systems had been put in place causing workers to skip breaks, and leaving them exhausted and prone to regular illness. The report is called ‘Do We Buy It? A supply chain investigation into living wage commitments from M&S and H&M’. To read it, click here. And the muddiness of the industry’s supply chains highlights the need for greater transparency. It is not sufficient for companies to be able to make claims about key human rights issues without supplying the quantifiable data that allows these claims to be independently checked, and for workers and consumers to hold them to their promises. Companies must publish all data relating to their supply chains; not only supplier lists but audit reports, and other important data such as wages paid per supplier by grade if they are to make public statements about performance on wages. Labour Behind the Label calls on M&S and H&M to: Set and publish living wage benchmarks that provide a level of dignity for a family, and use these when costing payments to suppliers to ensure that purchasing practices do not preclude payment of a living wage; Implement programmes, using these benchmarks as a target, that actually increase wages while not impacting on workers' health; Engage in negotiating and signing Enforceable Brand Agreements (EBAs) [Definition: EBAs are agreements made which empower workers and their organisations to address the root causes of workers' rights violations, are applicable across a number of workplaces, have mechanisms to ensure signatories take action stated, and are signed between brands and local trade unions, ideally supported by global federations and other global alliances]; Work transparently, including publishing data on progress towards measurable goals, publishing social audit reports, disclosing the names and addresses of supplier and subcontractor facilities in a spreadsheet format, and other key data about production facilities; and Investigate the rights violations listed in this report and take steps to remedy violations where appropriate. Do you agree? To tell the brands, click here. Labour Behind the Label is campaigning for garment workers’ rights worldwide, working to improve conditions and empower workers. For more information about what you can do to help, click here.  |
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