Factory Supply Research Articles

Agent-Based Trust and Reputation Model in Smart IoT Environments

The Internet of Things (IoT) enables smart devices to connect, share and exchange data with each other through the internet. Since an IoT environment is open and dynamic, IoT participants may need to collaborate with unknown entities with no proven track record. To ensure successful collaboration among these entities, it is important to establish a mechanism that ensures all entities operate in a trustworthy manner. We present a trust and reputation model that can be used to select the best service provider in an IoT environment. Our proposed model, IoT-CADM (Comprehensive Agent-based Decision-making Model for IoT) is an agent-based decentralised trust and reputation model that can be used to select the best service provider for a particular service based on multi-context quality of service. IoT-CADM is developed using a smart multi-agent IoT environment where information about entities is collected and evaluated using a trust and reputation algorithm. We evaluated the performance of the proposed model against some other well-known models in a simulated smart factory supply chain system. Our experimental results showed that the proposed IoT-CADM achieved the best performance.

Role of multinational buyers in ensuring worker voice through social dialogue: an exploratory study of the export oriented garment industry

Purpose This study aims to explore how multinational lead buyers can play an active role in ensuring worker voices in garment supplier factories where workers have limited space to raise their voices, and how buyers’ involvement increases the possibilities of worker voices mitigating barriers to social dialogues and enhancing mutual interests of buyers and workers in garment factories. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative research approach and multiple embedded case study method, this study considered buyer−supplier dyads as the unit of analysis, i.e. two multinational lead buyers and their four corresponding suppliers in the garment industry of Bangladesh. Focus group discussion and key informant in-depth interviews were techniques applied to collect factory-level data, and within and cross-case analysis techniques were applied to develop an overall understanding. Findings The results of this study reveal that the opportunities for workers to voice their concerns through social dialogue in garment supplier factories are limited due to various obstacles. Similarly, the role of multinational lead buyers in addressing these issues is found to be less than ideal. This study also shows that buyers can take short-term and long-term initiatives to ensure social dialogues. Moreover, this study presents how social dialogues can meet the expectations of multinational buyers and their garment suppliers. Research limitations/implications While this study focuses exclusively on the garment industry, similar scenarios also exist across a multitude of other industries. Thus, future research could extend this study’s scope to various sectors, providing a more comprehensive understanding of the general state of worker voices in Bangladesh. This study stands to make significant contributions to literature in the fields of global value chains, human relations and international business. It will pose critical perspectives on how upstream value chain suppliers can fortify worker rights through social dialogue, and elucidate the means and motives for lead buyers to play a more active role in this endeavour. Originality/value This study is distinct in its approach, integrating buyer−supplier roles to pave the way for enhanced worker voice opportunities through social dialogue in garment supplier factories.

Shifting Modes of Labor Regulation in Global Supply Chains

executive summary: This essay outlines the changing modes of regulation of labor conditions in global apparel supply chains, which are mostly concentrated in Asia; assesses the effectiveness of 25 years of private voluntary regulation by global firms; and examines critically the implications of new European regulation now mandating what was previously a voluntary corporate activity. main argumentAsia is the global center of apparel production, with Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Vietnam all being major exporters. Since the 1990s, activist pressure in developed country markets has forced global apparel and footwear companies to adopt voluntary methods to ensure that their products are not made under sweatshop conditions. Companies developed codes of conduct for the first-tier factories in their supply chains and found ways to audit whether supplier factories were in compliance. However, this voluntary private-regulation model has not been adequate to alleviate labor and workplace concerns in global apparel supply chains. A shift from private regulation to public regulation—the beginning of which may be currently underway in the European Union with the recent introduction of mandatory due diligence legislation—may prove to be a more effective means of bettering labor rights and conditions. policy implications• If the recent EU legislation allows global companies to be legally liable for violations of mandatory due diligence requirements regarding labor rights and conditions in supply chains, a sea change in worker rights and labor practices could occur. • The new legislation would require global companies to adopt more responsible purchasing practices so that their practices are not responsible for labor violations. • The EU legislation could have an impact on sourcing locations, as companies compete for locations that are more likely to provide institutional environments with lower risk of violations. Global suppliers would have a greater incentive to take the high road in terms of employment practices to obtain more business from European buyers. National governments in apparel-exporting countries may be motivated to improve enforcement of labor regulations.

Multinational Enforcement of Labor Law: Experimental Evidence on Strengthening Occupational Safety and Health Committees

Annually, work‐related mortality is responsible for 5–7% of all global deaths, and at least 1‐in‐9 workers experience nonfatal occupational accidents (ILO (2019a,b)). Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) committees are considered the key worker voice institution through which to improve workplace safety and health (ILO (1981)). I present evidence of OSH committees' causal effects on workers and on factories. To do so, I collaborated with 29 multinational apparel buyers that committed to enforce a local mandate for OSH committees on their suppliers in Bangladesh. With the buyers, I implemented a nearly year‐long field experiment with 84 supplier factories, randomly enforcing the mandate on half. The buyers' intervention increased compliance with the OSH committee law. Exploiting the experimental variation in OSH committees' strength, I find that stronger OSH committees had small, positive effects on objective measures of safety. These improvements did not come at a cost to workers in terms of wages or employment or to factories in terms of labor productivity. The effects on compliance, safety, and voice were largest for factories with better managerial practices. Factories with worse practices did not improve, and workers in these factories reported lower job satisfaction; this finding suggests complementarity between external enforcement and internal capacity in determining the efficacy of regulation.

Previous Employee Involvement in Pasuruan Bottled Drinking Water Supply Factory

This quantitative study explored the relationships between motivation, career development, job satisfaction, and employee engagement at PT. Erindo Mandiri (Aquase) Pasuruan. The research involved 134 randomly sampled employees who completed a Likert scale questionnaire. Using the SmartPLS program, structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the data. The results indicated significant effects of motivation and career development on job satisfaction and employee engagement. Furthermore, job satisfaction was found to mediate the influence of motivation and career development on employee engagement. These findings emphasize the importance of nurturing motivation, providing career development opportunities, and enhancing job satisfaction to foster higher levels of employee engagement. The implications suggest that organizations can utilize these insights to design targeted interventions and policies, creating a positive work environment that enhances employee well-being and contributes to improved organizational performance.
 Highlights:
 
 Motivation and Career Development: Key drivers of employee engagement.
 Job Satisfaction as a Mediator: Examining its role in linking motivation and career development to employee engagement.
 Implications for Organizational Performance: Utilizing findings to enhance employee engagement and promote positive work environments.
 
 Keywords: Motivation, Career Development, Job Satisfaction, Employee Engagement

The Phosphorylation Status of Hsp82 Regulates Mitochondrial Homeostasis During Glucose Sensing in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Sensing extracellular glucose, budding yeast switches from aerobic glycolysis to oxidative phosphorylation to adapt to environmental changes. During the conversion of metabolic mode, mitochondrial function and morphology change significantly. Mitochondria are the main supply factories of energy for various life activities in cells. However, the research on the signal pathways from glucose sensing to changes in mitochondrial function and morphology is still scarce and worthy of further exploration. In this study, we found that in addition to the known involvement of molecular chaperone Hsp82 in stress response during the conversion of metabolic mode, the phosphorylation status of Hsp82 at S485 residue regulates mitochondrial function and morphology to maintain mitochondrial homeostasis. The Hsp82S485A mutant that mimics dephosphorylation at S485 residue showed abnormal growth phenotypes related to mitochondrial defects, such as the petite phenotype, slow growth rates, and inability to use non-fermentable carbon sources. Further exploring the causes of growth defects, we found that the Hsp82S485A mutant caused mitochondrial dysfunction, including a decrease in cellular oxygen consumption rate, defects in mitochondrial electron transport chain, decreased mitochondrial membrane potential and complete loss of mtDNA. Furthermore, the Hsp82S485A mutant displayed fragmented or globular mitochondria, which may be responsible for its mitochondrial dysfunction. Our findings suggested that the phosphorylation status of Hsp82 at S485 residue might regulate mitochondrial function and morphology by affecting the stability of mitochondrial fission and fusion-related proteins. Thus, Hsp82 might be a key molecule in the signal pathway from glucose sensing to changes in mitochondrial function and morphology.

Walk the Talk: The Boohoo Case Study

This case study of a UK-based global fast fashion brand Boohoo encourages critical exploration of a complex, ethical and reputational crisis. Taking a macromarketing perspective, the reader is encouraged to consider all of the factors, actors and relationships in the industry, society and the supply chain to appreciate the resulting ethical considerations that arise. Boohoo has been described as a successful online company that provides a wide range of products, including clothing, footwear, beauty products and accessories. However, the company came under fire in July 2020 after an exposé published in the Sunday Times, the Sunday paper of The Times, named Britain's most trusted national newspaper. The exposé published a report from an undercover investigation that revealed some unacceptable practices in relation to working conditions. The poor working conditions were worsened by the COVID-19 outbreak. As the media criticised Boohoo, the company launched an independent review which eventually confirmed the allegations and stated that the investigation's findings were “substantially true”. Written from the perspective of a PR consultancy that wants to help Boohoo restore its reputation, the case uses secondary information to thoroughly understand Boohoo's situation. The PR consultants therefore investigate the Sunday Times’ allegations, Boohoo's practices and responses to those allegations, and the company's practices from an ethical point of view. The PR consultancy also investigates the fashion industry, with a focus on fast fashion, which creates an environment where suppliers and retailers in the system try to produce products as cheaply and profitably as possible. To fully understand those affected by this exposé, those influential to the industry and those stakeholders who govern or put pressure on the industry, they consider: the people and local government of Leicester ( pronounced Lester), the supplier factories, national government websites and views of pressure groups and charities.

Assessing the Social Impact of Corporations: Evidence from Management Control Interventions in the Supply Chain to Increase Worker Wages

ABSTRACTThis study examines an initiative by a large multinational garment retailer (H&M Group) to increase wages at its supplier factories by intervening in their wage‐related management practices. Difference‐in‐differences estimates based on eight years of data from over 1,800 factories show that the interventions were associated with an average real wage increase of approximately 5% by the third year of implementation. Our estimates suggest that the intervention‐associated wage increase was many times greater than if the retailer's cost for the program was instead paid directly to affected workers. We find that the wage effects were driven by factories with relatively poorer supplier ratings and do not find significantly different wage effects depending on the presence of trade unions. We also examine several nonwage outcomes such as factory orders, supplier price competitiveness, overtime pay, and total employment to probe the mechanisms underlying the wage increases. These findings offer new evidence on corporate social impact in global supply chains.

The portrayal of effectiveness of supplier codes of conduct in improving labor conditions in global supply chains: A systematic review of the literature

AbstractEven though workplace conditions worldwide are subject to local and international laws, labor conditions in global supply chains have continuously raised human rights concerns. In response to societal pressure, multinationals have taken on a certain degree of responsibility regarding workplace conditions in supplier factories, notably by adopting codes of conduct. Investigating the impact of this self‐regulatory policy, scholars have examined whether and how codes shape labor conditions at the production level, but the results of their empirical studies diverge and sometimes contradict. To bring clarity to the field and gain an overarching understanding of the impact of codes, this literature review analyzes the question of their effectiveness as examined in 33 scientific papers gathered via a systematic selection of empirical studies. The review shows that supplier codes are not deemed unanimously and evenly effective by scholars and often fail to improve labor conditions. However, a range of factors are identified that facilitate the implementation of codes and ensure its effectiveness. This article develops a taxonomy of these factors and intends to contribute to understanding codes' decoupling and recoupling processes by investigating the gap between codes provisions and their intended outcome: the improvement of labor practices in global supply chains.

Implementing and sustaining lean, buyer-supplier role, and COVID-19 pandemic: insights from the garment industry of Bangladesh

Purpose This study aims to explore the challenges in implementing and sustaining lean in garment supplier factories and the buyer–supplier role in mitigating lean barriers in a typical situation and pandemic. Design/methodology/approach Following a qualitative research approach and multiple embedded case study method, data were collected through in-depth interviews with senior managers of one lead buyer and their four key garment supplier factories in Bangladesh. Within and cross-case analysis, techniques were applied to understand the context-oriented lean challenges and buyer–supplier role in mitigating the challenges. Findings The study findings demonstrate that garment suppliers are less prepared and unsystematic in lean implementation having limited capabilities and less preparation. Moreover, they have limited support from buyers, less commitment from top management and employee resistance to implementing lean. Lean challenges become more intense because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, buyer–supplier responsible, cooperative and collaborative behaviour can mitigate lean challenges. Research limitations/implications Whereas many stakeholders may be responsible for lean challenges, this study explores dyadic role between buyer and supplier only based on a single lead buyer and their four suppliers. Hence future studies could consider more buyers and suppliers for a holistic understanding. Practical implications This study could help buyers and suppliers understand the underlying causes of lean implementation challenges in garment supplier factories and their role in sustaining lean reducing the challenges, particularly in a pandemic. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, for the first time, this study depicts how buyer and supplier can play their due roles to mitigate lean challenges in garment supplier factories in a pandemic situation.

Corporate codes of conduct and labour turnover in global apparel supply chains

AbstractResearch on private regulation of labour issues in global supply chains has focused extensively on whether supplier factories comply with the codes of conduct of global companies. Less is known about how such compliance relates to the preferences and behaviours of workers at export factories. This study analyses a unique dataset of factory audits matched with a survey of worker turnover rates from 622 factories in 28 countries supplying a large global apparel retailer. The results show that violations of the retailer's codes of conduct for suppliers are generally related to turnover, but that workers ‘vote with their feet’ primarily for violations of wages and benefits, relative to violations of other code provisions such as environment protection and safety standards. This ‘means‐ends’ decoupling between factory practices and worker preferences implies that global firms need to incorporate the livelihood logic that underlies workers' turnover decisions while implementing their private regulation programmes.

Routine politics of production in post-Fordist manufacturing

This article presents a theory of routine politics of production, which was inductively developed based on a case study of 22 supplier factories in the USA, including in-depth interviews with 31 managers and 52 workers. All factories had implemented lean production. The findings show that (i) some managers prioritise the qualitative upgrading of organisational capabilities over quantitative work intensification, (ii) this includes objective forms of worker empowerment, and (iii) many workers resist or are hesitant about these forms of empowerment (while being committed to their work). The majority of workers from this convenience sample described either no work intensification under lean or ‘positive intensification’, which by their own assessment reduces monotony and/or makes the work more challenging. The first necessary condition for routine politics of production to obtain is that managers prioritise qualitative upgrading over quantitative effort levels. The second necessary condition is worker reticence or resistance toward managerial attempts to change routines. The article eschews theories of control and consent in favour of a classical Marxist framework emphasising labour process contradictions. Managers face conflicting pressures between deskilling and upskilling labour. Workers develop a contradictory orientation of alienated commitment. They are committed to being productive workers, in an attempt to realise a purpose in response to their alienation. Yet, in another manifestation of their alienation, experiences of bad management result in scepticism toward management. They embrace their work and Fordist conceptions of efficiency, wanting to see their organisation succeed, yet they contest managerial attempts to upgrade routines, which they deem inefficient.

Supplier absorptive capacity: learning via boundary objects in sustainability-oriented supplier development initiatives

PurposeTo study the learning processes and mechanisms involved in sustainability-oriented supplier development (SSD), including how knowledge is transmitted by the buyer and how it is received, understood and internalised by the supplier.Design/methodology/approachAn exploratory longitudinal multi-case study approach is adopted. The research context is a social SSD project focusing on occupational health and safety (OHS) management at four supplier factories. The paper draws on the constructs of absorptive capacity and boundary objects.FindingsThe development of a supplier's absorptive capacity for OHS management is triggered by the transfer of boundary objects that are created by the buyer. Findings suggest that each supplier starts explorative learning in a similar and passive way in order to accept the knowledge, but then each supplier proactively transforms and exploits the knowledge through continuous sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring loops that develop the boundary objects in a way that fits their own needs and contexts, incorporating the objects into organisational structures and routines.Research limitations/implicationsThe research furthers the understanding of the development of supplier absorptive capacity for sustainability via SSD projects, including how it is triggered and sustained. The impact of ostensive and performative aspects of boundary objects on knowledge transfer is presented. Finally, insight is provided into how absorptive capacity and dynamic capabilities are linked in the context of SSD.Practical implicationsBuying firms should seek to develop boundary objects that can trigger and maintain learning momentum for sustainability at supplier organisations in addition to effectively transferring SSD-related sustainability knowledge. There is also a need to allow for sufficient flexibility in the design of the boundary objects, and to pay sufficient attention to how suppliers contextualise and embed them into their own organisations, providing support for this process where necessary. For the supplier, establishing structures and routines for OHS management can help to prepare for future audits, thereby reducing audit fatigue.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the supply chain learning literature by exploring the development of supplier absorptive capacity for sustainability triggered by the focal buying firm. It sheds new light on the role of boundary objects for facilitating knowledge transfer and learning between supply chain members in the context of SSD projects.

Do codes of conduct really mean a change in corporate practices with regard to human rights? Evidence from the largest garment companies worldwide

ABSTRACT Media coverage of abuse and human rights violations throughout global corporations’ value chains has focused stakeholders’ attention on these events leading global corporations to insert the human rights agenda into their social responsibility politics. Using media agenda setting theory and legitimacy theory, this paper focuses on the five largest garment companies worldwide (namely, Inditex, Primark, H&M, Gap Inc., and Fast Retailing) which between 2007 and 2018 were involved in scandals due to human rights violations in their supply factories in other countries and analyses how they have responded to the media coverage on these events to regain legitimacy. We examine the extent to which the selected companies’ codes of conduct address human rights issues and whether their adoption really meant a change in corporate practices. The analysis shows that almost all codes address all adverse human rights impacts that have been the subject of attention by the media. However, they were not reflected in the analysed companies’ actual behaviour. Therefore, the adoption of a code of conduct by such companies can be considered a legitimation strategy aimed at turning stakeholders’ perception and counteracting adverse media coverage.

APPLICATION OF EXPERIMENTAL PLANNING METHODS IN EVALUATION OF СТ3ГПС STEEL QUALITY ASSESSMENT

Introduction. Low-carbon low-alloy steels are widely used in construction. Therefore, despite the existence of a significant number of methods and ways to assess their quality criteria, the task of operational forecasting of these criteria is urgent. Difficulties in predicting the quality criteria of metal products from steels lie in the complexity of the technology of their production. If the parameters of the technology deviate from the normative documents, the properties of the material can differ significantly. In this regard, it is proposed to apply the method of experimental planning to estimate the tensile strength of low-carbon steel. Materials and methods. Samples of steel of ordinary quality Ст3Гпс made of a circle with a diameter of 24 mm were studied. The chemical composition of steel and its strength indicators varied within the normative documents in accordance with ГОСТ 380 and ДСТУ 2651. In the state of factory supply, the steel structure was ferritic-pearlitic. The content of the pearlite component, depending on the amount of carbon in the steel ranged from 11,2 to 17,6 %, the remaining fraction fell to ferrite. The results of the experiment. At the first stage of research the analysis of influence of each chemical element of steel on limit of its durability was carried out. To this end, with the help of the program "Expert", implemented on a computer, obtained one-factor models of strength forecast. In the second stage of research, the number of rows was reduced from 32 to 16 by implementing the matrix of experimental planning using the technique of small replicas. This approach significantly reduces the cost of experiments. The obtained multifactor (X1…X5) model for predicting the strength limit of steel St3Gps is adequate according to Fisher's and Cochren's criteria. According to Fisher's criterion, the coefficient of convergence of the results was 1,029 with a critical value of 2,400. The model is also adequate according to the Cochren test of 0,335 with a critical value of 0,547. At the third stage of research, based on the results of the analysis of the coefficients of the multiparameter model, histograms of complex assessment of the influence of chemical composition elements on the strength of steel are constructed. Conclusions. An adequate model for predicting its strength and histograms of the effect of its chemical composition on Ст3Гпс Steel was obtained. It makes sense to use the obtained results for the operational forecast of the strength of low-carbon steels in the state of factory delivery.

Buyer–Supplier Role in Improving Ergonomics in Garment Supplier Factories: Empirical Evidence from the Garment Industry of Bangladesh

Ergonomics is a key concern of garment suppliers to improve their workers’ well-being and efficiency. However, suppliers’ isolated initiatives are not sufficient to improve ergonomics conditions. Thus, buyers’ cooperation and collaboration with suppliers are necessary to make the ergonomic initiatives successful and sustainable. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of buyer-assisted ergonomics intervention on suppliers’ performance and the role of buyers’ assistance and suppliers’ initiatives for improving ergonomics conditions in garment supplier factories. Following a qualitative research approach and multiple embedded case study method, this study intervened in supplier factories and collected qualitative and quantitative data from one Danish buyer and their four key suppliers on ergonomics and the role of buyers and suppliers in improving ergonomics conditions. Collected data were analysed by employing both quantitative and qualitative data analysis techniques. This study demonstrates that buyer-assisted ergonomics intervention on the shop floor can improve ergonomics conditions in garment supplier factories. This study also shows that improving ergonomics in supplier factories need joint efforts of buyers and suppliers. The findings of this study will enrich the literature on ergonomics, sustainability, and buyer–supplier relationships by demonstrating how garment suppliers in developing countries can improve ergonomics to meet the expectations of lead buyers and their workers. This is a unique research attempt to understand ergonomics from a buyer–supplier relationship perspective and its impact on the social sustainability of garment suppliers.

Quality intervention, supplier performance and buyer–supplier relationships: evidence from the garment industry

PurposeThis study investigates the impact of a buyer-assisted quality intervention on suppliers' quality performance and buyer–supplier relational dynamics in the garment industry.Design/methodology/approachThis study employed a multiple-embedded case study following a qualitative research approach. The study used data from buyer-assisted quality interventions in sewing lines of four garment supplier factories. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews of buyer's representatives at their office and senior managers, line inspectors, supervisors and workers in supplier factories. In addition, data related to product quality was obtained from quality check sheets and observations on the shop floor. Data were analysed using qualitative data analysis techniques.FindingsThis study demonstrates that a buyer-assisted quality intervention improves product quality performance by reducing quality defects in targeted garment products resulting in improved buyer–supplier relationships. Moreover, this study identifies the lack of a systematic approach in quality control as a key reason for poor product quality.Research limitations/implicationsThe study adds knowledge to the literature on quality improvement and buyer–supplier relationships by analysing buyer-assisted quality interventions in the garment industry in Bangladesh. The study demonstrates that buyer's assistance and adopting a systematic approach in quality control can significantly improve product quality in the garment industry.Practical implicationsThis research can help the quality assurance managers in buyer and supplier firms understand the significance of quality interventions and systematic quality control approach to decrease product quality defects and ensure smooth buyer–supplier relationships.Originality/valueThe study adds new knowledge on the link between buyer-assisted quality interventions, systematic quality control and product quality in garments factories in Bangladesh.

COVID-19 and global clothing retailers' responsibility to vulnerable workers: NGO counter-rhetoric

PurposeThis article aims to examine how non-governmental organisations (NGOs)' narratives portray the vulnerability of workers in global clothing supply chains during the COVID-19 crisis.Design/methodology/approachThe research analyses the rhetoric in global clothing retailers' and NGOs' counter-rhetoric during the first seven months of 2020.FindingsDuring this period, retailers employed rhetorical strategies to legitimise irresponsible actions (corporate hegemony prevailed), while NGOs embraced forms of counter-rhetoric trying to delegitimise the retailers' logic, stressing the role of neoliberalism in worsening the situation.Originality/valueThe authors contribute to the literature by providing new insight into the consequences of COVID-19 for retailers' neoliberal practices and the livelihood of workers in global supply chains. Findings of this study extend authors’ knowledge about retailers' COVID-19 measures: These have contributed to the plights of workers working for their supply factories in the global South.

Buyer-assisted lean intervention in supplier firms: a supplier development approach

PurposeThis study aims to investigate how buyer-assisted lean intervention in garment supplier factories affects garment suppliers' productivity and production capability development.Design/methodology/approachEmploying a qualitative research approach and a lean intervention design, a multiple case study method was adopted for this study. Quantitative data on productivity performance and qualitative data on production capability development were collected from a Danish buyer and their four corresponding garment suppliers. Collected data were analysed using standard lean measurement tools and qualitative data analysis techniques.FindingsThis study demonstrates that buyer-assisted lean intervention is a useful strategy for garment suppliers to enhance their productivity and production capability. However, suppliers need to select the right lean tools, ensure seriousness and commitment to lean initiatives, substantial involvement of top management and workers, arrange formal and informal training, provide performance-based financial/non-financial incentives and nurture a learning culture to facilitate suppliers' production capability development.Research limitations/implicationsThis study implemented few lean tools in a single sewing line in four supplier factories for a short intervention duration. Thus, there is a scope for future studies to investigate the impact of the lean intervention on a large scale.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study might bring new insights to the management of buyer and supplier firms concerning how buyers could involve in suppliers' lean intervention initiatives and what suppliers need to ensure to develop production capability.Originality/valueFor the first time, this study engaged a buyer in suppliers' lean intervention initiatives to improve productivity and production capability in the garment industry of a developing country.

Task performance and occupational health and safety management systems in the garment industry of Bangladesh

PurposeThis study investigates the relationship between individual task performance of garment workers and occupational health and safety management systems (OHSMS) in the garment industry of Bangladesh.Design/methodology/approachFollowing a quantitative research approach and using a four-stage cluster sampling technique, data collected from 610 workers of twelve garments supplier factories using a structured questionnaire. Mean, standard deviation, correlation and stepwise multiple regressions performed to understand the relationship between task performance and OHSMS.FindingsThe study results demonstrate that occupational health and safety (OHS) policy, benchmarking, worker participation, OHS training, communication, emergency response, preventive and protective action, monitoring and review are the significant predictors of individual task performance of garment workers; and OHS policy contributes most substantially to the variance of task performance in the garment industry of Bangladesh.Research limitations/implicationsThis study’s findings contribute to operations management, human resources management and the health and safety management literature by demonstrating a link between operational performance, human resources management and OHSMS.Practical implicationsThis study could be beneficial for garment suppliers to understand how effective OHSMS can reduce production costs by increasing worker efficiency.Originality/valueThis is a unique research attempt as it considers the task performance dimension of an individual garment worker from the OHS management perspective.