The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Fair Labor Association (FLA) are joining forces to promote the ethical recruitment and protection of migrant workers in global supply chains. 

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by IOM deputy director general Laura Thompson and the Fair Labor Association (FLA) president and CEO Sharon Waxman in a ceremony yesterday (26 March).

IOM is an inter-governmental organisation that works to combat all forms of exploitation and abuse of migrant workers, including human trafficking, while the FLA is a non-profit multi-stakeholder organisation that works to promote adherence to international standards and improve working conditions worldwide. 

“The FLA has played a vital role in advancing ethical recruitment in recent years. These steps led to the adoption in October 2018 of a global industry commitment signed by more than 120 companies in the apparel and footwear sector,” Thompson says. “Our organisations have a responsibility to work together to address the risks that migrants face every day in their search for employment and livelihoods.” 

Waxman adds: “Responsible recruitment and mitigating forced labour are integral to the FLA’s work. The FLA and our affiliates believe no worker should be unable to leave a job at will because of the burden of a heavy recruitment debt to an employer. No migrant worker should have to worry about being able to return home freely because an employer is withholding a passport, other important legal documents, or workers’ wages. And no worker should have to risk termination because they are unable to work involuntary overtime or choose not to.” 

Apparel and footwear firms who signed up to last year’s ‘AAFA/FLA Apparel & Footwear Industry Commitment to Responsible Recruitment’ committed to create conditions where:

  • No worker pays for their job;
  • Workers retain control of their travel documents and have full freedom of movement; and
  • Workers are informed of the basic terms of their employment before joining the workforce.

The signing companies also agreed to work to “seriously and effectively” implement these practices, to incorporate the commitment into their social compliance standards by 31 December 2019, and to periodically report the company’s actions through sustainability and/or modern slavery legal disclosures.