Better Work Lesotho - Phase II

Better Work Lesotho (BWL) is a partnership programme between the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). In operation since May 2010, it is the programme’s ultimate goal to reduce poverty by creating decent work opportunities in Lesotho’s garment industry, which is the most important formal provider of jobs and income in the country, particularly for women. By conducting independent factory assessments against national and international labour standards as well as advisory and training services, the programme assists factories in the remediation of non-compliances. It is doing so with the aim to enhance working conditions in the garment sector, promote its overall competitiveness in global supply chains and make a contribution to generating and sustaining employment. Over the last three years, factories participating in the programme have been able to show im-provement in numerous compliance areas, including occupational safety and health, contracts and human resources and industrial relations. Recent assessment findings also indicate that the number of non-compliance issues relating to discipline and disputes in the workplace is decreasing. Factory management, union officials and workers report that workplace communication and cooperation has improved, particularly in those factories that have been receiving BWL services for at least a year or longer. At the end of its first phase, the programme was able to reach out to 65% of garment industry workers and 84% of factories exporting to the US. Building on the encouraging progress made to date the new strategy will focus on increased efforts to address areas with frequent non-compliances to ensure that improvements are sustainable. In its next phase, the programme will therefore adjust its assessment and advisory services toward promoting factories’ ownership in compliance improvement processes and assist them in developing systems-based approaches. It will do so by applying a new performance framework that will allow factories to move from compliance foundation building to self-sufficiency. By looking beyond factory level, it will be another priority of Better Work Lesotho to work closely with national stakeholders to improve the labour compliance regulatory framework and build capacity for mature industrial relations. With a view to strengthen the programme’s viability in terms of political, institutional and financial aspects, the next phase will also focus on enhancing stakeholders’ ownership and commitment to the programme as well as managerial and institutional capacities. Implementing the programme industry-wide to increase its effectiveness and a scaling of activities to improve its revenue base will be equally important.

Project symbol

LES/14/52/USA

Admin unit

BETTERWORK

Start date

01/01/2014

End date

30/06/2016

Total allocation

1243084

Total expenditure

Status

Closed

1243084

Development Partners

USA, United States Department of Labor, Bureau for International Labor Affairs, Office of Trade and Labor Affairs

Country/Countries

Lesotho

Outcomes

Promoting workplace compliance through labour inspection