Cempaka Belanda: C&A: turning a blind eye to the cost of cheap clothes?

"A Summary" – Apr 2, 2011 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Religion, Shift of Human Consciousness, 2012, Intelligent/Benevolent Design, EU, South America, 5 Currencies, Water Cycle (Heat up, Mini Ice Ace, Oceans, Fish, Earthquakes ..), Middle East, Internet, Israel, Dictators, Palestine, US, Japan (Quake/Tsunami Disasters , People, Society ...), Nuclear Power Revealed, Hydro Power, Geothermal Power, Moon, Financial Institutes (Recession, Realign integrity values ..) , China, North Korea, Global Unity,..... etc.) - (Text version)

"The Timing of the Great Shift" – Mar 21, 2009 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“ … Here is another one. A change in what Human nature will allow for government. "Careful, Kryon, don't talk about politics. You'll get in trouble." I won't get in trouble. I'm going to tell you to watch for leadership that cares about you. "You mean politics is going to change?" It already has. It's beginning. Watch for it. You're going to see a total phase-out of old energy dictatorships eventually. The potential is that you're going to see that before 2013.
They're going to fall over, you know, because the energy of the population will not sustain an old energy leader ..."

"Update on Current Events" – Jul 23, 2011 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: The Humanization of God, Gaia, Shift of Human Consciousness, 2012, Benevolent Design, Financial Institutes (Recession, System to Change ...), Water Cycle (Heat up, Mini Ice Ace, Oceans, Fish, Earthquakes ..), Nuclear Power Revealed, Geothermal Power, Hydro Power, Drinking Water from Seawater, No need for Oil as Much, Middle East in Peace, Persia/Iran Uprising, Muhammad, Israel, DNA, Two Dictators to fall soon, Africa, China, (Old) Souls, Species to go, Whales to Humans, Global Unity,..... etc.)

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“… The Shift in Human Nature

You're starting to see integrity change. Awareness recalibrates integrity, and the Human Being who would sit there and take advantage of another Human Being in an old energy would never do it in a new energy. The reason? It will become intuitive, so this is a shift in Human Nature as well, for in the past you have assumed that people take advantage of people first and integrity comes later. That's just ordinary Human nature.

In the past, Human nature expressed within governments worked like this: If you were stronger than the other one, you simply conquered them. If you were strong, it was an invitation to conquer. If you were weak, it was an invitation to be conquered. No one even thought about it. It was the way of things. The bigger you could have your armies, the better they would do when you sent them out to conquer. That's not how you think today. Did you notice?

Any country that thinks this way today will not survive, for humanity has discovered that the world goes far better by putting things together instead of tearing them apart. The new energy puts the weak and strong together in ways that make sense and that have integrity. Take a look at what happened to some of the businesses in this great land (USA). Up to 30 years ago, when you started realizing some of them didn't have integrity, you eliminated them. What happened to the tobacco companies when you realized they were knowingly addicting your children? Today, they still sell their products to less-aware countries, but that will also change.

What did you do a few years ago when you realized that your bankers were actually selling you homes that they knew you couldn't pay for later? They were walking away, smiling greedily, not thinking about the heartbreak that was to follow when a life's dream would be lost. Dear American, you are in a recession. However, this is like when you prune a tree and cut back the branches. When the tree grows back, you've got control and the branches will grow bigger and stronger than they were before, without the greed factor. Then, if you don't like the way it grows back, you'll prune it again! I tell you this because awareness is now in control of big money. It's right before your eyes, what you're doing. But fear often rules. …”

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

C&A: turning a blind eye to the cost of cheap clothes?

RNW, 7 September 2010 - 10:06pm | By Johan van der Tol

(Photo: ANP)

Dutch clothing chain C&A has always traded on its bargain prices. But the bargains come at a hidden cost: the risk of appalling working conditions for the people who make the clothes.

Worldwide clothing chain C&A is still in the hands of the Dutch Brenninkmeijer family, nearly 140 years after the Brenninkmeijer brothers – Clemens & August – first set up shop. The multinational says it operates strict ethical standards in contracting its manufacturers in country’s like India and Bangladesh. C&A claims its products aren’t tainted by child labour or other forms of exploitation. But it seems it’s easier said than done for the company to keep its hands clean. Recent reports in Dutch daily de Volksrant reveal abuses in an Indian factory that makes clothes for C&A.

Own criteria

In the mid-1990s C&A set up the company SOCAM to monitor its suppliers’ working conditions. But C&A’s watchdog isn’t up to the job, say organisations like the Clean Clothes Campaign and Fair Wear Foundation. They’re pressing for an international system of controls. Currently there’s a myriad of mainly commercial monitors, each applying its own auditing criteria.

Marieke Eyskoot of the Clean Clothes Campaign says the system is flawed. “It makes you wonder about how independent it is if the company that carries out the audit stands to gain from a positive result.”

But C&A stresses that SOCAM is strictly independent. There’s no need for any other inspectors, the chain says, because SOCAM’s monitoring system is extremely thorough. Even sub-sub-contractors get regular checks, says C&A spokesman Jochen Overmeyer: “It delivers the best results for us with regard to auditing our supply chains. With SOCAM, we are able to reach deep into our supply chain with our unannounced visits. We do about a thousand audits of this kind a year.” The visits are unannounced, says C&A, so factories can’t hide abuses from the inspectors.

Trust

But there’s still a big disadvantage to inspectors with links to their client, according to Marieke Eyskoot of the Clean Clothes Campaign: “The key thing is that the inspectors often don’t enjoy the workers’ trust. So they don’t know much about the crucial matters, like wages, and how long you have to work, and how much overtime you do. Whether you have to hand in your passport or if there’s sexual intimidation. They don’t find out these kinds of things.”

According to de Volkskrant, C&A has been selling stock made by a subsidiary of KPR Mill in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. At the factory, 9000 textile workers are kept under lock and key in a walled plant, the paper reports, citing its own investigation. A quarter of their wages are withheld as compulsory ‘bottom drawer’ savings, which they are only allowed to access after three years. And the women have no employment contract or trade union representation.

Cheap

The Swedish clothing chain H&M was also found to be doing business with KPR Mill. H&M has said it will investigate the claims and sever any links with the Indian company. C&A also swiftly denied doing business either with KPR Mill or its subsidiary.

Western consumers are hooked on cheap clothing. If textile workers are to get decent working conditions, cost prices will need to rise by 20 percent, a figure which is eventually quadrupled in the retail price. In other words, C&A could afford to bear the cost of the price hike itself.

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Dutch clothing chains accused of exploiting Indian workers

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1 comment:

Ramya14 September, 2010
The photo is NOT at all taken in KPR Factory. I'm sure. KPR factory is like a university. They provide good salary, food, education, facilities & a lot more. You never can see something like this photo.
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