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There was a flutter of intrigue in the Impactt office this morning over the allegations made in the Today programme expose of labour conditions at a fair-trade banana supplier. The investigation alleged that Polish migrant workers in Luton, packing bananas for Tesco and Waitrose, were working excessive hours and had no breaks. Supervisors were recorded shouting and bullying the workers. During the investigation a pregnant women had a miscarriage after the management failed to allocate her lighter duties. What made this story particularly piquant was the fact the plant was packing fair-trade bananas!

More on the Today Website.

This raises some interesting points about the relationship between fair-trade and ethical trade. Impactt have been concerned for some time that whilst fair-trade guarantee a better price for farmers, it does not necessarily mean labour conditions through out the supply chain are upheld.

The packing plant may have been considered low risk by retailers – it was UK-based and supplying fair-trade, however this is no guarantee that labour standards will be ok. The UK like many other countries is a destination for migrant workers. And as Impactt’s experience the temporary labour working group demonstrated, migrant workers are vulnerable to abuse as they are completely dependent on one employer: the farm or labour provider that hired them.

Retailers and fair-trade organisations need to be aware of the issues relating to labour standards as well as the issues relating to terms of trade. Whilst these are certainly connected one does not guarantee the other.