Suchergebnisse

Protecting labour rights in a globalizing world : an introduction / Axel Marx, Jan Wouters, Laura Beke, and Glenn Rayp -- The protection of international labour rights : a longitudinal analysis of the protection of the rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining over 30 years in 73 countries / Axel Marx, Jadir Soares and Wouter Van Acker -- The EU's social dimension and its external trade relations / Samantha Velluti -- Divided we stand : the European Parliament's position on social trade in the post-Lisbon era / Lore Van den Putte -- Asian and US perspectives on labor rights under international trade agreements compared / Ronald C. Brown -- EU economic governance and labour rights : diversity and coherence in EU, Council of Europe and ILO instruments / Frank Hendrickx and Pieter Pecinovsky -- Trade unions and collective bargaining power in global labor governance / Sigrid Koch-Baumgarten and Melanie Kryst -- The rapprochement of ILO standards and CSR mechanisms : towards a positive understanding of the 'privatization' of international labour standards / Ruben Zandvliet and Paul van der Heijden -- Between the dragon's gift and its claws : China in Africa and the (un)civil fostering of ILO's decent work agenda / Abdul-Gafar 'Tobi' Oshodi -- On the transformative capacity of private fair labour arrangements / Ceren Pedekmir, Pieter Glasbergen and Ron Cèorvers -- Compliance opportunities and the effectiveness of private voluntary standard setting : lessons from the global banana industry / Dennis Klink -- The 'Accord for fire and building safety in Bangladesh in response to the Rana Plaza disaster / Juliane Reinecke and Jimmy Donaghey -- The International Labour Organization, multinational enterprises, and shifting conceptions of responsibility in the global economy / Yossi Dahan, Hanna Lerner and Faina Milman-Sivan -- Conclusion : which way to enforcement? / Glenn Rayp, Axel Marx, and Jan Wouters

AbstractThe institutional design of voluntary sustainability standards (VSS) has been recognized as an important determinant of compliance with VSS rules, which partly explains heterogeneity in VSS sustainability impacts. However, the current understanding of how VSS institutional design generates compliance is scattered and lacks systematic operationalization. This paper brings together different strands of literature and identifies three main mechanisms through which VSS institutional design can generate compliance: enforcement, market incentives, and capacity‐building. We propose an integrated analytic framework that operationalizes these mechanisms into specific, identifiable design attributes. We apply it in an empirical analysis of 13 agrifood and forestry VSS to assess the extent to which these mechanisms are used in VSS institutional design. While enforcement appears necessary for VSS to operate, we find heterogeneity in how these mechanisms are used and combine, which is partly explained by contextual factors. This provides avenues for analyzing their respective effectiveness in generating compliance.

AbstractThe integration of voluntary sustainability standards (VSS) into public policy (i.e., their institutionalization) is generally considered a driver for their adoption. However, although the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), a leading VSS in forest governance, has been increasingly institutionalized, its adoption has been stagnating recently. To understand what drives this stagnation, we analyze the adoption of FSC certification globally and at the country level over a 20‐year period. We show that the global stagnation in FSC adoption hides distinct adoption dynamics at country level. We highlight three types of country‐level adoption dynamics: stagnation, growth, and decline. Based on selected descriptive country case studies, we explore factors driving these dynamics, with a focus on the role of governments and competition with other VSS.

AbstractGlobal governance in its myriad forms and actor constellations has decisively demonstrated the potential for rule‐making above the nation state to be liberated from the 'iron cage' of traditional intergovernmental forums and multilateral bureaucracy. To further investigate an increasingly complex global reality, we propose drawing on organisational theories and methods for penetrating the internal dynamics of global governance processes and outcomes. This article begins by mapping out the current use of organisational theories in global governance research. It then turns to exploring the potential for other areas of organisational theory and conceptual development to shed light on the governance dynamics and performance of voluntary sustainability standards (VSS), a significant site of transnational rule‐making and experimentation by private actors. We highlight a paradigmatic shift from 'arms‐length' to 'embedded' models ofVSSmonitoring and regulation, reflected in new modes of engagement and interaction between rule‐makers and rule‐takers. This new generation of embeddedVSSgovernance is distinguishable by enhanced information provision, learning and knowledge creation. The implications of embedded governance forVSSmonitoring and performance are explored with reference to the experience of the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF).

AbstractAll throughout history, slavery has been a constant and a key factor in economic development. Also for many centuries slavery and forced labour was legal. Only from the beginning of the 20th century onwards slavery became illegal and criminalized. Many international commitments were made to address the issue of forced labour and slavery. However, despite these international legislative efforts slavery, forced labour and human trafficking still persist today. New regulatory instruments have been developed in recent years to further enforce these international commitments. These instruments aim to force private and public actors to comply with the international conventions. Little is known about their effectiveness. Do these initiatives have any impact? This special section seeks answers to this question by analysing different instruments and their implementation.

The International Labour Organization's (ILO's) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work is a "canon" in the global governance of labor rights. The ILO has its own implementation, monitoring, and enforcement system in place to foster compliance with the declaration. However, other transnational regulatory initiatives also integrate the declaration into their standards and procedures, leading them to become nondelegated intermediaries. We analyze and compare two such cases: the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF). The case studies show two distinct approaches, which differ significantly in operation and the involvement of other intermediaries. The two initiatives also differ in effectiveness. We suggest that this is related to how they involve different intermediaries and how they relate to the targets. The OECD involves few intermediaries, and these play passive roles with little interaction with targets, while the FWF involves many intermediaries, which play diverse roles and constantly engage targets.

ResumenLa regulación privada surge como herramienta internacional de gobernanza para el control del cumplimiento de las normas internacionales del trabajo. Recientemente se han expresado dudas sobre su eficacia para mejorar las condiciones de trabajo en las cadenas de suministro. Su método habitual de auditoría vertical se considera inadecuado para este contexto. El artículo evalúa si el diseño de estos sistemas puede reforzarse para garantizar un mayor cumplimiento. Los autores examinan el potencial y las limitaciones de mecanismos con participación de los trabajadores y actores locales, como los mecanismos de quejas, así como la dinámica de corregulación público‐privada.

RésuméCertains dispositifs privés constituent désormais une forme de gouvernance sociale mondiale qui contribue à la mise en œuvre des normes internationales du travail. Cependant, l'effet véritable de ces dispositifs sur les conditions faites aux travailleurs dans la chaîne d'approvisionnement est parfois contesté, et les systèmes d'audit utilisés dans ce cadre pour vérifier la bonne application des normes parfois jugés inadéquats. Les auteurs se demandent par conséquent comment réformer ces systèmes, en s'intéressant notamment aux mécanismes qui mettent à contribution les parties prenantes, à savoir en particulier les mécanismes de traitement des plaintes, dont ils détaillent les atouts et les limites.

AbstractPrivate labour regulation has emerged as an international governance tool for the enforcement of international labour standards. Yet, doubts have recently been expressed concerning the potential of such private systems for effectively improving labour conditions in supply chains. Their typical top‐down auditing approach to enforcing standards is considered inappropriate when it comes to international labour standards. This article assesses whether the design of these systems can be strengthened in order to ensure better compliance. In particular, the authors draw attention to mechanisms which empower stakeholders, such as complaint mechanisms, whose potential and constraints are discussed.