Fairtrade flowers for Valentine's Day strengthen women's rights
Women make up the majority of the approximately 500,000 workers in the East African flower sector. Melanie Dürr from Fairtrade Max Havelaar appeals before Valentine's Day to focus on the working conditions of these women and to support initiatives that strengthen their rights.
Systematic discrimination in the flower sector
Women make up the majority of the approximately 500,000 workers in the East African flower sector, which supplies Switzerland, particularly for Valentine's Day. ’On this holiday of love, we should focus on the working conditions of these women who grow the flowers and support initiatives to strengthen their rights,« says Melanie Dürr, Head of International Cooperation at Fairtrade Max Havelaar. She continues: »Because today, many female workers are systematically affected by discrimination, sexual harassment or a lack of occupational health and safety. Fairtrade Valentine's roses can make a real contribution to improving working conditions on the ground.«
Structural grievances widespread
Hundreds of thousands of people work on East African flower farms, but only around 15 percent of them are employed on Fairtrade-certified farms. Only a small proportion of the flowers imported for Valentine's Day are Fairtrade-certified. Structural abuses are widespread in the flower sector: Sexual harassment, inadequate maternity protection and a severe underrepresentation of women in management positions are key challenges.
Binding standards for real improvements
To counteract these problems, binding structures are needed that enable real improvements. Fairtrade places a clear focus on the promotion and protection of women. The approximately 65 Fairtrade-certified flower farms in East Africa employ around 75,000 people and are subject to comprehensive Fairtrade standards. These stipulate fixed employment contracts, regulated vacation entitlements, clearly defined maternity protection regulations and firmly established mechanisms for dealing with sexual harassment. Regular training courses also raise employees’ awareness of their rights.
Women's School of Leadership
Among other things, Fairtrade is implementing the «Women's School of Leadership» initiative. A sector-specific program in East Africa that aims to empower women in the Fairtrade flower supply chain. Specific measures have been introduced on participating farms to facilitate women's access to leadership roles, strengthen gender policies and improve reporting and counseling structures for sexual harassment.
Fridah Makena, a 28-year-old Kenyan woman, took part in the program: «After the ten-month training at the Fairtrade Women's School of Leadership, I successfully applied for a job as a supervisor. Today, I lead a team of flower workers and am proud of my professional development.‚
Fairtrade-certified flowers stand for working conditions that strengthen women's rights and take responsibility in global supply chains.
More information: https://www.maxhavelaar.ch
