This risk profile was commissioned in 2014 by Better Work, a joint partnership programme of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), with funding provided by IFC. The study examines sector-wide fire and building safety risks present in garment factories participating in the ILO Better Work Jordan programme (BWJ).
The document provides an analysis of current fire and building safety risks in Jordan’s garment industry and suggests possible mitigation measures as well as recommendations to key stakeholders to reduce these industry risks. Methods of analysis include initial desk research, benchmarking, document review, stakeholder discussions, and on-site factory inspections (including worker dormitories).
Jordan is unique among Better Work countries as most of the industry’s workforce are migrants. These workers come from Bangladesh, India, Nepal and other neighbouring countries within the region. This reliance on foreign workers requires factories to provide accommodation either within the factory compound or in some other location. Conditions within factory dormitories were considered in the profiling exercise, and were found to contribute to the overall level of risk, especially for dormitories that are situated very near the main factory building. During the on-site assessment activity, the methodology and expectations applied to both the main factory and the dormitories were the same.