A total of 1,388 out of the 1,452 readymade garment factories inspected by Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh are lagging behind the schedule in implementing corrective action plan while remediation in 57 factories are progressing as per schedule. Only seven factories so far have completed all the remediation items suggested by the major European retailers’ platform.

Starting from November 2013, Accord conducted initial inspections at 1,550 readymade garment factories and provided corrective action plans to 1,452 units. During the inspection, the Accord identified 32,726 electrical, 32,033 fire and 19,415 structural safety hazards in the factories.

The result is that 74.80 per cent of the electrical and 50.50 per cent of the fire safety hazards have been corrected while the percentage of correction of the structural safety hazards is 36.80 per cent.

Accord conducted a successful pilot safety committee training program at 56 supplier factories having registered trade unions and the initiative has formed safety committees in 33 of the factories.

If any factory seeks financial assistance for remediation, Accord would facilitate negotiation over the issue between the lead buyers and manufacturers.

Following the Rana Plaza building collapse on April 24, 2013, that killed more than 1,100 people, mostly garment workers, western retailers and apparel brands, in response to public outrage, began a major push to improve safety in Bangladeshi factories linked with their business.