Assessment of a Unique Agreement to End Gender-Based Violence in Apparel Factories

The Dindigul Agreement to End Gender-based Violence and Harassment (GBVH) has been successful in empowering women to identify and combat gender-based violence in the workplace, largely due to a strong female-led union and a productive labor-management relationship, according to a recent assessment by Cornell's Global Labor Institute.

The Dindigul Agreement brought together global brands, such as Gap Inc., PVH Corp. and H&M, as well as international NGOs, union groups like Global Labor Justice and Asia Floor Wage Alliance, and a local union - Tamilnadu Textile and Common Labor Union and the Management of Natchi Apparel (P) Ltd. and the Eastman Spinning Mills (P) Ltd. - in Dindigul, India in 2022 to create a unique agreement to end gender-based violence.

Sarosh Kuruvilla, academic director of the Global Labor Institute, conducted the evaluation and compiled his results in the report, "The Dindigul Agreement to Eliminate Gender-Based Violence and Harassment: Does it Work?"

His findings will also be presented during panel discussion conducted by eCornellon Dec. 8, at 9 a.m.

"The big takeaway is that this is a really good demonstration project," Kuruvilla said. "It shows that it is possible to empower marginalized women workers to combat gender-based violence at both the workplace and in their communities, through the establishment of a women-led labor union, and a multi-point grievance procedure, anchored by a high degree of labor management collaboration.

"Women are trained in gender-based violence all over the world, but when they face violence, they can only speak up about it if they have systems in place to report it and a strong union at their back."

The Andrew J. Nathanson Family Professor in Industrial and Labor Relations, Kuruvilla's assessment report adopted a broad scope centered around whether the agreement works; if so, why; and whether it is replicable and scalable. He found that the Dindigul Agreement was successful for the workers and in meeting the objectives of its creators, but the specific factors involved make it unclear whether it could work elsewhere.

Read more on the ILR website.
Julie Greco is the communications director for the School of Industrial and Labor Relations.