From Primark to prawns: we shouldn’t ignore workers’ rights and Labour won’t

Anyone who has read today’s papers will have seen the deeply troubling reports of what appear to be cries for help stitched into Primark clothing. Discounted dresses were found to have “degrading sweatshop conditions” and “forced to work exhausting hours” embroidered into their labels. Primark – as well as Amnesty International – are rightly investigating the matter. But whatever they discover, there is no doubt that the spotlight on international workers’ rights must now burn more brightly than it ever has before.

This story isn’t the first of it’s kind; in the last two months three further incidents related to workers’ rights have hit the news.

First, the 24th April marked the one year anniversary of the Rana Plaza tragedy in Bangladesh. On this day, a creaking building collapsed, killing more than 1,100 garment workers and injuring 2,500 other people. Workers had warned about the perilous condition of the site just hours before it fell. Their pleas fell on deaf ears; they were ordered inside to their deaths. A year on the battle for fair compensation continues.

Second, in Qatar, the TUC and Human Rights Watch have helped bring the plight of construction workers to international attention. Too many  migrant workers have had their passports seized and their pay withheld  while they have to work in conditions where health and safety precautions are non-existent. You can see for yourself on my videoblog here.

Worse still, too many of those who came to work on the construction sites in and around Doha have lost their lives. Even the audit commissioned by the Qatari government called for an investigation into the high numbers of deaths by heart failure amongst the migrant population. A call that up until now appears to have been rejected.

Third, in Thailand, reports this month point to a deeply worrying trend in the in the seafood industry. Following a six month investigation, the Guardian alleges that workers key to the production of prawns are forced to toil for months on end, without pay, under threat of violence and death.

These are just some of the realities of people across the world. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimate that almost 21 million people today are victims of forced labour – 11.4 million women and girls and 9.5 million men and boys. In 2014 that is a disastrously high number.

The brutal abuse of labour in the name of profit and cheaper food has to stop. For Labour fighting the exploitation of migrant workers is vital to modern day development.

Even in opposition there are actions we can take to fight back. Shadow Development Minister Alison McGovern MP along with Shadow Consumer Affairs Minister Stella Creasy, established the ‘Who made my clothes?’ campaign, to put pressure on retailers to ensure their clothes are ethically produced. And in government we want to do much more.

That’s why the Department for International Development (DFID) under Labour will make fighting for workers’ rights a crucial component of International Development. We will reverse this government’s decision to withdraw funding from the International Labour Organisation and we will work with our international partners like the International TUC to ensure that those who have the will to work hard, can have the power to get on. And we will extend the Work in Freedom programme to protect twice as many migrant workers.

The next Labour government will use DFID as the department for global change, not simply as a ministry for investing 0.7% of our Gross National Income on official development assistance. It will be a department for real and lasting development that will help to even up power imbalances. Whether it be garment workers in Bangladesh, construction workers in Qatar, or fisherman in the South China Sea, protecting and securing workers rights is important to that vision.

Decent jobs, under decent conditions for decent pay should be a right for all. Under the next Labour government that’s what DFID will fight for.

Jim Murphy is the Shadow Secretary of State for International Development