Asia’s garment sector is responding to macro-level changes including supply chain pressures, socio-political shifts, and greater scrutiny of responsible business conduct. In this conversation, Kaori Nakamura-Osaka, ILO Assistant Director-General and Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, and Roopa Nair, Chief of ILO/IFC’s Better Work programme, share how the ILO and one of its flagship programmes are addressing these challenges across the region.
How does Better Work contribute to the ILO’s Decent Work Supply Chain Agenda in Asia?
RN: Better Work plays a key role in advancing the ILO’s agenda in Asia by embedding awareness of and adherence to national labour laws and fundamental principles and rights, social dialogue, and women’s economic empowerment into its factory interventions in apparel and footwear industry. We collaborate with governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, global brands and other industry stakeholders to improve working conditions and business performance across the region.
We are known for our work at the enterprise level, where our factory engagement helps address issues such as wages, occupational safety and health, and discrimination. We also share our accumulated data and evidence to help address decent work county programme and national priorities, including strengthening compliance and working conditions, informing evidence-based dialogue and legal reforms and supporting an environment for inclusive economic growth. .
A distinctive part of our approach is our collaboration with international brands, with whom we strive to align their responsible business conduct goals with decent work objectives. Brand cooperation is critical to improving working conditions at scale. These efforts support a more sustainable and resilient sector and help advance the ILO agenda and the broader UN Sustainable Development Goals.
From your perspective as Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, how can the ILO help create enabling environments for decent work in the garment sector?
KNO: I was pleased to learn that Better Work focuses not only on supporting individual enterprises but also on strengthening national systems. That reflects an approach I am familiar with from my own experience in Japan, where I worked with businesses and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), collaborating with the ILO on human rights due diligence in global supply chains.
When I started working on this issue, many companies were unsure where to begin. In parts of Asia, the concept of human rights is still not fully understood. But when we frame it in terms of concrete labour rights—freedom of association, fair wages, occupational safety and health—companies become more receptive and willing to take action. That experience taught me the importance of engaging stakeholders in ways that are locally meaningful and context specific. This applies to countries that are garment manufacturers.
Another important lesson was that some issues—like child labour—cannot be addressed by or in a single enterprise. These are systemic challenges that require broader collaboration, including with governments and development partners. That’s why the ILO’s role in facilitating dialogue and building institutional capacity is so important.
A recent regional dialogue on supply chains held by ILO in Bangkok recognised that stronger action is needed to turn the potential of the region’s supply chains into decent work and shared prosperity. We also need to work with national partners to create an enabling environment for sustained progress. Better Work’s work is vital in this regard.
How does Better Work contribute to creating these enabling environments in Asia’s garment supply chains?
RN: Our starting point is to help factories and different stakeholders understand how to practically implement laws and standards at the enterprise level. This helps to improve compliance but to also identify gaps. Indeed, not all issues can be resolved at the enterprise level alone. For example, the data and evidence we gather from the factory level has helped to identify misinterpretations or gaps in wage policy, weaknesses in the implementation of social protection systems and dispute resolution mechanisms, and underlying root-causes of poor working conditions and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work that may sit outside of the factory.
This information can drive action to be taken by governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, and even brands that help improve and sustain decent work at the enterprise level and beyond. The policy and institutional work done by the rest of the ILO with the constituents is informed by what Better Work data, evidence and experience in a labour-intensive industry such as the garment sector. In turn, that policy and institutional work serve to strengthen and sustain compliance and broader decent work outcomes that contribute to an ecosystem and enabling environment that reinforces and advances decent work.
What are the biggest labour challenges facing the garment industry in the region?
KNO: There are many, but I would highlight several key issues. First, we continue to see deficits in social protection, freedom of association, and occupational safety and health. These issues are often amplified for vulnerable groups such as migrant workers, who may face low wages, limited legal protections, and harassment or gender-based discrimination. In some countries, OSH standards are applied differently for nationals and migrants, which is concerning.
These challenges stem in part from broader demographic and economic shifts. Many countries in Asia are experiencing rapid ageing, which increases demand for migrant labour. At the same time, economic pressures are straining institutions. So, we need to understand both the individual issues and the broader forces that shape them.
What are some of the key milestones Better Work has achieved in this region since the launch of Better Factories Cambodia over 20 years ago?
RN: Better Factories Cambodia (BFC) was originally created to monitor working conditions, including pervasive child labour in the garment industry. It was a condition for continued trade between the US and Cambodia. We focused on robust data collection aligned with national labour laws and principles of Core Labour Standards that drove the collective action of different actors to address and prevent child labour and other non-compliance areas.
That research-driven foundation, focus on national laws and their application, and the ability to promote collective action is a big part of Better Work’s DNA. Over time, the programme evolved to support factory-level improvements and the capacity building of industry stakeholders, and provide an evidence base to support national reforms, and global discourse on supply chains. Independent research has shown the intervention model has led to a significant reduction in the gender pay gap, improvements in wages, working hours, and highlighted the importance of social dialogue and non-discrimination in strengthening compliance as well as productivity and profitability.
More recently, the establishment of Better Work country-based programmes have been tied to addressing comments from the ILO supervisory mechanisms in parallel, including related to labour inspection, freedom of association amongst other areas. This pre-condition and working closely with other ILO policy and technical units contributes to an enabling environment for decent work beyond Better Work’s direct footprint.
What are the future goals of the ILO and Better Work in Asia?
KNO: Sometimes workers are not aware of their own rights or the importance of being protected. So, raising awareness of workers can meaningfully contribute to the achievement of decent work. Of course, the other aspect is amplifying worker voice and creating opportunities and platforms so that their concerns and grievances can be heard. We cannot ensure healthy supply chains without each party being an active participant.
RN: We’re entering a new chapter for Better Work. Learning from how recent geo-political shifts and disruptions have impacted some country-based programmes, we are focused on contributing to locally-anchored ecosystems for decent work that are resilient and long-lasting, with or without Better Work. We want to ensure constituents and industry stakeholders are enabled to take the lead in upholding labour standards and healthy, competitive economies. That means making our tools, methodologies, and data more accessible so that they can be replicated more broadly, including by others—beyond factories, sectors and countries, directly engaging in Better Work. That also means working as one-ILO to ensure stronger institutions and policies safeguard and sustain gains made and scale and deepen impacts.