Essay Example on Walmart Codes of Conduct CofC

The Accord The initial inspections were conducted by international engineering firms contracted by the Accord The Accord The Accord has covered more than one hundred eighty brands mainly European By gathering them it allows them to share cost information and responsibility which provides an effective way that allows smaller brands to contribute as well Disappointedly there seems to be a lack of support from the North America retailer such as Walmart and Gap According to Christy Hoffman deputy general secretary of UNI Global Union Gap was concern about the legally binding nature of the terms Without a doubt it shows that the firm is not ready to commit to improving SC at a certain level Although Gap was not linked to Rana Plaza it is currently working with over eighty factories in Bangladesh On top of that their garment was found in the Tazreen factory fire in 2012 Also private labor standard has proliferated in the textile sector but they lack The Accord s ability to coordinate multiple approaches leading to competition and lack of coordination Fransen 2011 Responsibility VS Accountability Labor rights are universal and inalienable International Labor Rights Forum Responsibility is considered as the MNC s own will voluntarily thus it is not restricted by law 

However with the prevalence of developed country s national protections policies workers in third world country like Bangladesh has been a victim of the rise in the global supply chain due to the violation of labor rights The very fact that MNC now have a huge influence on employment rights supply chain and even a country s GDP has drawn global attention to the corporation s accountability According to the Clean Clothes Campaign the garment retailers have hired in a total of over three million people which accounts for twelve percent to Bangladesh s GDP If MNC is accountable for labor rights in SC they will have to take it a step further It implies rights of authority which includes the right to demand an answer and impose sanctions Mulgan R 2000 Subcontractor VS Transparency Pledge After the tragedy in Rana Plaza there was virtually no public information available regarding the apparel company sourcing from the factories involved As most of the suppliers are subcontracted or sub subcontracted in some cases they are even unauthorized Indeed Locals have to search through rumbles to look for garments with brand tags 

According to Walmart s director in the international corporate affair unauthorized contractors can make it difficult to audit and confirm our suppliers are adhering to the standards we insist are upheld Whiteout a doubt transparency is the key to tackle certain limitation However historically supplier list has been considered as proprietary information to MNC While in other cases Walmart refused to sign the transparency pledge due to their own existing transparency mechanism This has left us with a question that with a certain responsibility that Walmart has taken up by implementing their own measurement it may not be enough Though the pledge does not contain an enforcement mechanism once an MNC has signed the agreement it will lead to a greater accountability Consumption Based Actors and Social Movement Organization 

Online campaign group such as SumOFUS helped raise consumer awareness and exert consumer pressure through online petitions against companies to sign the Accord such as Walmart in the US Julian R Jimmy D The purchasing power of consumers can be conceptualized with The Exit Voice and Loyalty Framework Hirschman s 1970 Consumers have a choice to boycott retailers filing complains or remains as a loyalty customer With the rise of social movement organizations including faith groups and human rights activists for instance Clean Clothes Campaign These voluntary organizations have mobilized consumers with concerns on the current situation in a global supply chain By encouraging consumers to sign petitions and wear campaign badges they hope to raise the organization alert The consumer can therefore act as a force to implement pressure on MNC to take on more responsibility for labor rights in SC More importantly it is important for them to know when to switch off and move on to the negotiation part As social movement can be seen as a double edged sword campaign groups will need to stop shouting at them and get MNC engaged discuss