Local Means in Value Chain Ends: Dynamics of Product and Social Upgrading in Apparel Manufacturing in Guatemala and Colombia

Pipkin, Seth

doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.04.016

Cited by 27 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Pipkin, 2011;Zhu and Pickles, 2014)? Social upgrading is defined as the process of improvement of the rights and entitlements of workers, as social actors, which enhance the quality of their employment (Barrientos et al, 2011).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Rana Plaza collapse aftermath: are CSR compliance and auditing pressures effective?

Sinkovics

Hoque

Sinkovics

2016

Accounting, Auditing &Amp; Accountability Journal

177

166

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If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to investigate the intended and unintended consequences of compliance and auditing pressures in the Bangladeshi garment industry. To explore this issue the authors draw on three medium-sized suppliers. The institutional changes that followed the Rana Plaza accident in April 2013 make Bangladesh in general and the garment industry in particular an interesting and suitable research setting for standards compliance. Design/methodology/approach -The study adopts a multiple case study approach. Face-to-face interviews have been conducted with the owners of three Bangladeshi garment manufacturing firms and several workers. Additionally, organisational documents and local newspaper articles had been collected wherever possible. Findings -The results indicate that the pressure for compliance has led the case companies to prioritise the implementation of measurable standards over the socially grounded needs and priorities of workers. As a consequence certain initiatives instead of adding new social value in fact destroyed previously existing social value. Furthermore, the pressure for compliance created the necessity to find ways to cover the sizable cost of compliance. This prompted firms to pursue process upgrading through technological advancements and increased work pressures on the labour force. These initiatives led to an increased power imbalance and the exclusion of unskilled workers from the job market.Research limitations/implications -The paper contributes to the understanding of the human rights implications of compliance and auditing pressures and initiatives. Furthermore, in order to further enrich existing knowledge in the critical accounting literature, the study draws on insights from the global value chains (GVC) and international business (IB) literatures. Originality/value -The paper contributes to the understanding of the human rights implications of compliance and auditing pressures and initiatives. Furthermore, in order to further enrich existing knowledge in the critical accounting literature, the study draws on insights from the GVC and IB literatures.

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Rana Plaza collapse aftermath: are CSR compliance and auditing pressures effective?

Sinkovics

Hoque

Sinkovics

2016

Accounting, Auditing &Amp; Accountability Journal

177

166

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“…Previous studies show that a lead firm's coordination and its long-term relationship with a supplier can encourage the supplier's upgrading of both product and process (Meyer-Stamer et al 2004;Ponte et al 2014). However, it has been pointed out that economic upgrading can be associated with both positive and negative social impacts on its local workers (Nadvi 2004;Pipkin 2011;Rossi 2013). Hence, there is a need to integrate social impacts of GVC participation into VC analysis (Bolwig et al 2010).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is often assumed that economic upgrading would automatically lead to social upgrading through the improvement of such measurable standards as higher wages (Barrientos et al 2011;Milberg and Winker 2011). Yet, this view is challenged by, among others, Pipkin (2011), who demonstrates divergent impacts of economic upgrading on social upgrading in the apparel industries in Guatemala and Colombia;and Rossi (2013), who shows variations of employment security and income gains, depending on where a supplier is positioned within the GVC, as well as on whether the workers are on regular or irregular contracts.…”

Section: Issues Of Social Upgrading In Gvcmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social upgrading and cooperative corporate social responsibility in global value chains: the case of Fairphone in China

et al. 2019

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In this article, we explore how a lead firm's strategy for corporate social responsibility influences the social upgrading of a supplier in a global value chain. Based on a single case study approach, we investigate the interaction between Dutch smartphone producer Fairphone and its Chinese supplier Guohong. On the one hand, the case illustrates how a cooperative approach to corporate social responsibility can lead to progress in suppliers' social upgrading. In particular, we highlight the role of a so‐called workers' welfare fund as a mechanism not only for improving measurable labour standards but also for enabling rights. On the other hand, the case demonstrates how the limited production and technological capabilities of the suppliers, a competitive market environment and lead firms' limited strategic access to the supply chain might constrain the extent of social upgrading through a cooperative approach towards corporate social responsibility in a global value chain.

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“…Eventually, the CBI was expanded into the Caribbean Basin Trade and Promotion Act (CBTPA), but even at this point the tariff rate fell to 0 only on products in which the local value added consisted of cut, make, trim, and fi nishing operations. Not until CAFTA went into effect in 2005 could every aspect of the production process in this supply chain of textiles and apparel, including the use of local yarns, fi bers, and other raw materials, be performed in the Central American countries (Pipkin, 2011 ). This example shows that even though some TAs can open up new prospects for developing countries to participate in cross-border production sharing, this participation may be limited to only a few segments of the supply chain, a practice that could eliminate potentially important opportunities.…”

Section: Policy Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Local Means in Value Chain Ends: Dynamics of Product and Social Upgrading in Apparel Manufacturing in Guatemala and Colombia

Cited by 27 publications

References 39 publications

Rana Plaza collapse aftermath: are CSR compliance and auditing pressures effective?

Rana Plaza collapse aftermath: are CSR compliance and auditing pressures effective?

Social upgrading and cooperative corporate social responsibility in global value chains: the case of Fairphone in China

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