IMPROVING WORKING CONDITIONS AND PRODUCTIVITY …

1 IMPROVINGWORKING CONDITIONSAND PRODUCTIVITY INTHE GARMENT INDUSTRY111111/111111///1 Ill!! li/lI Il//llIll liii45408rIVEDIIMPROVINGWORKING CONDITIONSAND PRODUCTIVITY INTHE GARMENT INDUSTRYAn action manualedited by Juan Carlos HibaInternational Labour Office GenevaCopyright International Labour Organization 1998 First published 1998 Publications of the International Labour Office enjoy copyright under Protocol 2 ofthe Universal Copyright Convention, Nevertheless, short excerpts from them maybe reproduced without authorization, on condition that the source is indicated. Forrights of reproduction or translation,application should be made to thePublications Bureau (Rights and Permissions), International Labour Office,CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland. The International Labour Office welcomes , institutions and other users registered in the United Kingdom with theCopyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1P 9HE(Fax + 44 171 436 3986), in the United States with the Copyright ClearanceCenter, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923 (Fax + 1 508 750 4470), or inother countries with associated Reproduction Rights Organizations, may makephotocopies in accordance with the licences issued to them for this , Juan CarlosImproving WORKING CONDITIONS and PRODUCTIVITY in the garment industry: Practical ideasfor ownersand managers of small and medium-sized enterprisesGeneva, International Labour Office, 1998/Management development guide!

2 , / WORKING CONDITIONS !, /Labour PRODUCTIVITY !, !Management',!SmaIl-scale industry!, !Clothing industry!. 92-2-110849-XILO Cataloguing in Publication DataThe designations employed in ILO publications, which are in conformity withUnited Nations practice, and the presentation of material therein do not imply theexpression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the International LabourOffice concerning the legal status of any country, area or territory or of itsauthorities, or concerning the delimitation of its responsibility for opinions expressed in signed articles, studies and othercontributions rests solely with their authors, and publication does not constitute anendorsement by the International Labour Office of the opinions expressed in to names of firms and commercial products and processes does notimply their endorsement by the International Labour Office, and any failure tomention a particular firm.

3 Commercial product or process is not a sign publications can be obtained through major booksellers or ILO local offices inmany countries, or direct from ILO Publications, International Labour Office,Cl-I-1211 Geneva 22, or lists of new publications areavailable free of charge from the above in ItalyILOITURP refaceImprovements in WORKING CONDITIONS and workorganization can result in increased PRODUCTIVITY andcompetitiveness. This has been clearly demonstrated inAsia, Latin America and Africa by entrepreneurs of smalland medium-sized enterprises who have taken voluntaryaction to improve WORKING CONDITIONS and 1988, the ILO published two manuals on Higherproductivity and a better place to work: an Action manual,addressed to owner-managers of small and medium-sizedenterprises, and a Trainers' manual. These manuals havebeen used in numerous awareness-raising and trainingworkshops, as part of the Office's technical advisoryservices and for technical cooperation projects.

4 They haveencouraged improvements in different types of individualenterprises making products such as iron castings,furniture, footwear, small household appliances, food andbeverages, paper, tiles and cement pipes, and 1994, it was decided to develop training materialstargeted at a particular industry or sector. The garmentindustry was selected because of its significant contributionto economic growth in many countries and because it is amajor source of foreign-exchange earnings. It is also amajor employer of women. IMPROVING WORKING conditionsand PRODUCTIVITY in this industry could thus result inmaking these small and medium-sized enterprises morecompetitive, efficient and safer, and also extend betterprotection to women publication follows a similar approach to themanuals on Higher PRODUCTIVITY and a better place towork, written by Thurman, Louzine and It shows how to take simple, effective, low-costaction to raise PRODUCTIVITY while IMPROVING CONDITIONS atthe workplace.

5 Some of the technical topics coveredinclude handling and storage of materials, lighting, work-station and product design, safe and efficient machineoperation, workplace layout, welfare facilities and workorganization. The examples given are drawn from actualsituations and experiences of owners and managers ofsmall enterprises producing garments. All of them havevoluntarily participated in training programmes organizedby the ILO. The emphasis is on the implementation ofpractical, low-cost and locally appropriate measuresdirectly related to PRODUCTIVITY . Practical tools forassessing CONDITIONS of work, planning the process ofchange, involving workers and assessing PRODUCTIVITY arealso are indebted to many individuals and institutions forthe ideas and examples used in this book. We benefitedfrom their contributions to technical cooperation projectsand national programmes such as the project financed bythe UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) onImproving WORKING CONDITIONS and PRODUCTIVITY in Small-and Medium-sized Enterprises in the Philippines, theFINNIDA (Finnish International Development Agency)financed project on Training and Information Project forAfrican Countries on Occupational Safety and Health inthe United Republic of Tanzania, and the nationalprogramme entitled Melhor Ambiente de Trabalho, MajorProdutividade (Better WORKING environment, higherproductivity) carried out and funded by the ServicoBrasileiro de Apoio as Micros e Pequerias Empresas(SEBRAE).

6 In particular, we are grateful to the followingfor their substantial contributions: the Bureau of WorkingConditions and the Regional Offices of the Department ofLabor and Employment, the Agro-Industrial Managementand Consultancy, Inc., and Mr. William Salter, SeniorSpecialist, ILO Multidisciplinary Team for South-East Asiaand the Pacific, in the Philippines; the FactoriesInspectorate (Ministry of Labour), the National Institute ofProductivity, the Moshi-Arusha Occupational HealthService (MAOHS), and Mr. Vesa Tornberg, AssociateExpert of the FINNIDA project, in the United Republic ofTanzania; and Ms. Regina Heloisa Maciel, Departamentode Psicologia Experimental, Universidade de S o Paulo, also express our appreciation to the hundreds ofowners and managers of small and medium-sizedenterprises who opened their doors and made it possibleto organize the training courses.

7 Their experience andenthusiastic support provided the substance of thispublication. Special thanks to employers' organizations, PRODUCTIVITY centres, training institutions and ministries oflabour that participated in organizing the training in the CONDITIONS of Work Branch providedconsiderable technical, adminisfrative and secretarial back-up to complete this publication. Acknowledgements aredue to Mr. Juan Carlos Hiba, for coordinating thecontributions of various individuals and for the technicalediting, and to Ms. Simone Didero, Ms. Joan Robb andMs. Helen Wielander for typing the many revisions to thefinal text. Prof. Nigel Corlett of the University ofNottingham, Mr. Peter Hasle from the Centre forAlternative Social Analysis in Copenhagen, Mr. MalcolmPugh, Pugh Management Consultants, United Kingdom,and Mr. Michael Henriques, Entrepreneurship andManagement Development Branch of the ILO, allprovided valuable technical comments and usefulsuggestions to improve the draft.

8 Last but not least, ourthanks to the Publications Bureau for their assistance inprocessing this publication, and to the InternationalTraining Centre of the ILO in Turin for the hope that this publication will lead to improvements inthe CONDITIONS of work in small and medium-sized garment-producing enterprises, and thus to a better WORKING life forthousands of workers, especially women Dy-HammarChiefConditions of Work BranchWorking CONDITIONS and Environment DepartmentContentsPrefaceVPART 1 Chapter 1:Introduction3 What this book is all about3 How to use this book5 Chapter 2 Efficient materials storage and handling7 Better organized storage7If in doubt, take it out7 Avoid placing materials on the floor7 Gain productive space by introducing multi-level racks10 Provide a place for each tool and work item10 Fewer, shorter and more efficient transport and handling operations12 The more you use it, the closer it should be12 Provide containers for operation outputs and inputs13 Use mobile storage14 Clear and mark passageways15 Fewer and more efficient lifting operations15 Don't lift loads higher than necessary15 Move materials and perform tasks at WORKING heights18 Make lifting more efficient and safer18 Chapter 3 Practical workstation and product design21 Placing materials.

9 Tools and controls within easy reach21 Improve work posture for greater efficiency23 Design your garments for easy assembly, low waste and high quality28 Use guides to easily check measurements of pieces and garments28 Use jigs and other devices to save time and effort29 Improve displays and controls to minimize mistakes32 Chapter 4 Productive machine safety, maintenance and environmental control35 Give your machines a PRODUCTIVITY check35 Machine safety35 Purchase safe machines37 Maintain machines properly38 Teach workers to troubleshoot common machine problems39 Environmental control measures42 Clean regularly and properly - do not spread dust42 Make local ventilation cost-effective43 Replace a dangerous substance with a safer one44 Chapter 5 Good lighting for quality products45 Make full use of daylight45 Avoid glare47 Choose an appropriate visual work background47 Find the right place for light sources49 Use the right lighting device and fixture50 Avoid shadows50 Ensure regular maintenance53 Chapter 6 Premises suited to production55 Protect your premises from outside heat and cold55 Let nature help you57 Improve the heat reflection of the walls and roof57 Improve heat insulation57 Use shades to protect against heat

10 From the sun57 Let natural air-flow improve ventilation58 Make better use of horizontal air-flow58 Utilize the tendency of hot air to rise61 Improve your floor surface61 Build flexibility and adaptability into your plant layout62 Prevent fires and electrical accidents64 Fire64 Electrical hazards65 Chapter 7 Effective work organization67 Eliminate extra tasks and operations67 Defeat monotony to keep workers alert and productive68 Install planned buffers to make the work flow smoothly68 Ensure work-in-progress is under control68 The Kanban method69 Provide adequate training and retraining70 Design responsible, flexible jobs70 Specify individual tasks and responsibilities70 Combine production operations and tasks70 Set up semi-autonomous or autonomous groups to improve efficiency and reduce supervisory cost71 Arrange the production layout to meet enterprise objectives73 Improve the sequencing of your production facilities74 Choose the most appropriate layout75 Set up a production progress control system78 Designing the system79 Implementing the system79 Chapter 8 Low-cost work-related welfare facilities and benefits83 Make sure essential facilities serve their purpose83 Drinking water83 Sanitary facilities85Be ready for emergencies86 Make sure that rest means recovery87 Rest breaks87 Rest areas87 Use low-cost facilities to attract and retain the best workers88 Work clothes88 Lockers and changing rooms88 Eating areas89 Canteens89 Health facilities90 Transport facilities90