Our work in production countries - Exchanges with organised homeworkers – Anukatham trade union. © FEMNET 13 June 2022 First trip to India since Corona - lively exchange with FEMNET partner organisations After two years of travel, Daniela Wawrzyniak, coordinator of FEMNET foreign projects, and Gisela Burckhardt, CEO of FEMNET, travelled to Tirupur in Tamil Nadu and Bangalore for 10 days from 22 May to 1 June 2022. They visited our partner organizations SAVE, READ, Munnade, GLU and Cividep and bring many impressions with them. Gisela Burckhardt summarizes her impressions for you: We haven't seen our partners in India for so long! It was nice to see each other in person and not just through Zoom. Every time new fascinated and at the same time also kills me a bit the bustling India. Incredibly many people are on the streets, the women beautifully dressed in their colorful shalwar kamiz or saris. You can see many young people on buses, in restaurants, everywhere you can hear the honking of cars and motorcycles. Sidewalks have numerous holes into which you can fall, who does not have to, does not walk. You can feel that we are slowly passing away in Europe when you experience the lively life in Asia. In fabric shops or on the market, there are tons of offers of beautiful fabrics for all occasions and the demand is great, people jostling between the tables. Visit to SAVE and a spinning mill On the road in South India. © FEMNETWe were lucky: It had rained before our arrival, the peak of the heat wave had survived, but it was still 33 degrees in Tirupur, in Bangalore, on the other hand, pleasantly warm around 25 -28 degrees. At SAVE, we had discussions about various projects: the Partnership Initiative Tamil Nadu was a topic carried out within the framework of the Textile Alliance and supervised by FEMNET. So we also visited a spinning mill, talked to the management, including the president of the factory, and made it clear that it depends on the head of the company whether complaint committees really work effectively, training alone cannot do this. On the grounds of the spinning mill is also the hostel for the many migrants from the north of India who stay here. The hostel was well maintained, there was a toilet and a laundry room per room for the approximately 8-10 women sleeping on mats on the floor. Up to 80% of the workforce are migrants who also speak different languages, a major challenge for everyone involved. SAVE also allowed us to meet 14 women who organize homeworkers. These women work from home: They embroider, sew labels, cut threads and much more and are often at the disposal of the agents when it comes to paying for their work. The agent brings them the clothes and picks them up again. Most of them used to work in a factory, but had to give up work because the children could not be looked after. Because the agents paid the women differently per piece, they began to organize, even once went on a strike for a week and achieved an increase in pay. As a rule, women receive two rupees (equivalent to 0.14 cents) for 12 pieces. Exchange with READ Visit to READ: Homeworker and Dalit woman with child at meeting. © FEMNETAnother exchange took place with the NGO READ in Tirupur, which advocates for the correct payment of women and supports them above all in the fact that the factories pay social security contributions (health and old-age insurance). FEMNET supports READ in this project. To date, 40 women's groups have been consulted and around EUR 1308 paid out to the women concerned through complaints in the last three months. With the head of READ, I also exchanged views on the German Supply Chain Act, where there may be cooperation in the future. Meeting with GLU in Bangalore The GLU team, President Rukmini on the left. © FEMNETIn addition to Munnade and Cividep, with whom we exchanged a lot about current projects, we also met with Rukmini, the President of the Garment Labour Union, and discussed with her the preparation of her trip to Germany, where she will receive the Human Rights Prize of the City of Bremen on 20 June at the suggestion of FEMNET. She is the president of the only women-led Garment Labour Union (GLU) in India. We exchanged vividly with the numerous trade unionists who had come to meet us. The biggest problem they mentioned was the high targets set daily by factory management, which cannot be achieved during normal working hours. They have to create up to 120 pieces per day, but a maximum of 100 pieces is feasible. This leads to pressure and stress on all parties involved, often to insults of the women, some are also exposed in front of others. Other problems are the too low inflation surcharge, the delayed factory buses that pick up the women and bring them home, the many overtime hours without pay. GLU has organized the women in about 25 factories, they feel empowered by the others. Meeting with the women of the NGO Munnade, Bangalore Munnande's team with Gisela Burckhardt and Daniela Wawrzyniak. © FEMNETEspecially after the long, pandemic-related break, it becomes clear how important personal exchange with our partners in the Global South is. To share your own impressions, to tackle problems together and to seek solutions – and ultimately to draw strength and inspiration from the joint work in order to continue to stand up unconditionally for our goals. Gisela Burckhardt, 13.6.2022
