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Vacancies
FTAO vacancies
There are no vacancies at the moment.
We are always interested in hearing from talented people (professionals, students or volunteers) who want to support Fair Trade and are looking for potential opportunities at the Fair Trade Advocacy Office. Please email info@fairtrade-advocacy.org to enquire.
For opportunities within the wider Fair Trade Movement, please find relevant links below.
FTAO requests for proposals
We are launching two requests for proposals: research on Fair & Unfair Purchasing Practices in the EU garment sector
Background
Pre-existing power imbalances in the garment sector allow clothing brands and retailers to impose Unfair Trading Practices (UTPs) – e.g. dictating lead times, payment details, prices, as well as applying retrospective changes – upon their supplying manufacturers. The lack of transparency and unrelenting pressure on production create conditions for labour abuses. Labour rights will be difficult to improve without regulating purchasing practices and curbing abusive purchasing practices.
The Fair Trade Advocacy Office (FTAO) and Traidcraft Exchange are implementing a three-year project to address UTPs in the textile manufacturing supply chain. A key element of this project involves understanding unfair purchasing practices and identifying best practices in terms of companies who try to adopt fair purchasing practices. We are therefore launching the following two calls for proposals, open to researchers, consultants and institutions.
1- Study to identify abusive purchasing practices and how they affect the garment supply chain within the EU
Objective
We are commissioning a study on the impact of unfair purchasing practices within the EU, and more particularly the EU domestic suppliers’ experience. The scope of most current initiatives is limited to understanding and addressing the impact of UTPs on workers in key garment production locations (e.g. Bangladesh, Cambodia, India), while there is a significant gap in knowledge on how brands’ purchasing behaviours affect manufacturers within EU production locations (e.g. Romania, Italy, Poland).
Looking for…
Individual consultants or organisations who are interested in undertaking this study. Applicants must have demonstrable subject matter expertise in business practices of the garment sector, and experience of interviewing & gathering case studies on issues sensitive to the interviewee. Any previous work on UTPs is an asset.
Application
Proposals should be submitted via email to Marta Garda (garda [at] fairtrade-advocacy [dot] org) and Ben Vanpeperstraete (policy [at] traidcraft [dot] org) on or before 17 January 2022 with “Proposal to identify UNFAIR purchasing practices” as the email subject line.
If interested in applying, please read the full request for proposals, including timeline and budget available, here.
2- Study to identify fair purchasing practices, examples amongst EU SMEs, and barriers to implement in the garment supply chain
Objective
We are commissioning a study on existing best practices in terms of fair purchasing practices within EU SMEs. The aim is to fill the knowledge gap on how individual brands try to take responsibility within a monopsony market with severe horizontal pressures, as well as on which barriers these front-runners face.
Looking for…
Individual consultants or organisations who are interested in undertaking this study. Applicants must have demonstrable subject matter expertise in business practices of the garment sector, as well as appropriate methodological experience. They should be able to demonstrate an ability to assess existing practices. Any previous work on UTPs is an asset.
Application
Proposals should be submitted via email to Marta Garda (garda [at] fairtrade-advocacy [dot] org) and Ben Vanpeperstraete (policy [at] traidcraft [dot] org) on or before 17 January 2022 with “Proposal to identify FAIR purchasing practices” as the email subject line.
If interested in applying, please read the full request for proposals, including timeline and budget available, here.