PRESS BRIEFING BY DIVISION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ON INDUSTRY, CONSUMPTION, LABOUR, TRADE

Press Briefing

PRESS BRIEFING BY DIVISION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ON INDUSTRY, CONSUMPTION, LABOUR, TRADE

At a press briefing this afternoon at Headquarters, sponsored by the Division for Sustainable Development of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, panellists addressed the issue, "Industry, Consumption, Labour and Trade: Who will Protect the Environment?"

Jagjit Plahe, of EcoNews Africa, said that during the current session of the Commission on Sustainable Development, for the first time non-governmental organization (NGO), trade union and industry representatives had been in meetings together with government representatives. A real dialogue had taken place on the subjects of responsible entrepreneurship, corporate management tools, freshwater and technology transfer.

The debate had been healthy and interesting, she said. Some proposals regarding problems in sustainable development had emerged from the meeting, including a proposal to review voluntary initiatives that govern industry. The NGOs had proposed that those initiatives should be reviewed by a "multi- stakeholder process" -- a group of NGOs, governments and trade unions. The results of that review would be reported to the Commission's next session.

Eric Frumin, of the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees, said he concurred with the previous speaker's comments on the productivity of the meeting and the new opportunities it had provided for the major groups to participate more actively in the Commission's work. He welcomed the opportunity to be involved in the multi-stakeholder process. The question of voluntary initiatives and codes of conduct was of central importance in addressing the key issues of sustainable development, whether dealing with environmental initiatives or initiatives on economic and other development issues.

He said he was concerned, for example, about the conditions in the world apparel industry, the sweatshop problem, whether it was in Manhattan or in Asia or elsewhere. There had been an opportunity to talk in an unusually frank way about the importance of core labour standards as a critical part of sustainable development. He believed that the incorporation of internationally recognized labour standards was vital to any comprehensive efforts at sustainable development.

An excellent example was provided in the case of Benzine, a well-known toxic chemical that was still widely used in the Asian apparel industry, even though it was unnecessary, he said. In Brazil, a country also facing economic problems, but which respected the right of workers to organize trade unions,

the use of Benzine had been severely restricted. That showed what an active role trade unions had, and how important core labour standards were in sustainable development.

Glen Gilpin, of the Southern Diaspora Research and Development Centre, said he also endorsed what the previous speakers had said. In particular, he was concerned that indigenous groups were fully taken care of in the movement of businesses into the South, especially in the area of tourism. It was important to maintain their self-sufficiency and cultural integrity, particularly in relationship to small island developing States, which were especially vulnerable to natural disasters.

A correspondent asked if the issue of over-consumption had been addressed during the meetings. Mr. Frumin said that there had already been an important move towards greater fuel efficiency in automobile production. However, for the workers in developing countries faced with poverty, over- consumption was not an issue. It was important in how poor people were affected by technological change, but there was more concern about poverty and under-consumption.

Ms. Plahe said that consumption and production had been addressed many times during the Commission's session. The main focus this year had been industry and freshwater. Many NGOs had been involved in the freshwater debate, and the idea of consumption of freshwater and the pricing of water had been looked into. Poor people were having to pay higher prices for water, while middle-income people, especially in developing countries, had to pay lower prices. In that sense, the issue had been addressed.

Although there was over-consumption in developed countries, she continued, that was not the case in developing countries, where people did not have enough food to eat. That debate was moving to a different level, as multinational companies were moving into developing countries. Investment in developing countries was all about building markets there. That was worrying. It was important not to follow the same consumption practices that had taken place in the developed world. From that point of view, the multi-stakeholder process had been useful. Consumption patterns would also be addressed at the next session of the Commission.

There were many problems in the World Trade Organization (WTO) related to the working place, and much had been done towards promoting clean production processes, a correspondent said. How was the issue of dangerous products, rather than just processes, being addressed? Mr. Frumin said that the trade unions in the chemical industry, for example, had grappled with the issue of the toxicity of their products. Some of the products, for instance those made with chlorine, were known to be toxic. There was an active effort under way among trade unions to find practical methods to promote sustainable alternatives. Not only because of the pollutant effects of such products, but also because workers tended to face the highest exposures to those materials.

Sustainable Development Briefing - 3 - 29 April 1998

It was in the interests of workers to look for sustainable alternatives. As a small example, in the dry-cleaning industry, toxic chemicals were not always necessary, as in many cases water could be used with the right equipment.

If a company was doing its best to be environmentally sound, it could lose business to a cheaper company that was not following good environmental practices, a correspondent noted. Voluntary initiatives were a good start in regulating environmental impact, but what about policies? Ms. Plahe replied that was exactly the question that NGOs had been asking. On the one hand, there were corporations that went beyond levels that had been set, but there were corporations that did not abide by such initiatives. That was why the major review of voluntary initiatives had been proposed. That would be done together with all the groups involved. The process would not be confrontational, and should result in a system whereby the results of such initiatives could be monitored. There had been quite a lot of support for that process from the secretariat of the Commission and from governments.

The correspondent followed up, saying that every treaty had a follow-up and results were monitored, but the issue was so vast, was there anything more focused that could be done? Mr. Frumin answered that while codes of conduct were important, the establishment and enforcement of minimum standards was essential. From the labour standpoint, that meant the four core labour standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO): the right of free association, the right to collective bargaining, the prohibition of forced and child labour, and the prohibition of discrimination in employment. If the Member States would adopt those nationally, and if they were incorporated into trade agreements, it would be much easier to implement sustainable development policies from an economic standpoint. Enforceable environmental standards were also important, and went hand in hand with the voluntary initiatives.

The "Group of 77" developing countries had not been inclined to agree to core labour standards, said a correspondent. Had there been any dialogue with them on that issue at the meeting? Mr. Frumin replied that it was hard to say whether there would be any concrete progress by the end of the meeting. The resistance of the Group of 77 countries was known, but those same countries faced substantial economic challenges in alleviating poverty and increasing personal income. If governments were not able to do that through promoting voluntary efforts, then it would be in their self-interest to allow the adoption of those labour standards.

A correspondent asked for more details on the focus on indigenous peoples. Tourism and big business seemed to be responsible for so much of the disrespect of indigenous peoples, she added. That was a priority, replied Mr. Gilpin. For example, there had been meetings with caucuses representing indigenous people in the Amazon region and with Navajo tribes in Nevada. With the Navajo, the discussions had centred on the growing of hemp, so they had sustainable means, and on the setting up of craft centres. Those were some of the concrete projects under way.

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A correspondent asked about the globalization of goods, and different standards that applied in different countries. Mr. Frumin said that generally the essential question of the adoption of mandatory environmental and labour standards was inescapable. A social floor must be set that allowed workers to form unions and popular involvement by civil society so that development policies were not controlled strictly by corporate investors and by government.

What was the impact of the stand that labour had taken concerning core standards on the ongoing negotiations? a correspondent asked. Mr. Frumin said that was hard to characterize. The issue had been controversial.

What about core environmental standards? a correspondent asked. Core environmental standards were as important as labour standards, Mr. Frumin replied. The environment was an essential factor in living standards, and he looked at both labour and environmental standards as equal. It was no use improving labour standards if the environment in which people worked was damaged.

In developing countries, said Ms. Plahe, where trade union movements were not strong, there was a major effort to get out information about such movements. That in itself, in many countries, was a difficult process, and was a major step. Regarding indigenous people, the first area of the review of voluntary initiatives was to see if the initiatives were even appropriate to the people affected by them. That was the first time such questions had been asked. Indigenous people were more often overlooked.

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