Dignity-Led Supply Chain Management: A Cross-Country and Cross-Industry Study of Workplace Dignity in Supply Chains
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Bath
Department Name: School of Management
Abstract
The project aims to change the way labour rights in supply chains are measured and managed by redirecting the attention to workplace dignity (WD) - a fundamental psychological benchmark - defined as a sense of self-worth derived from workplace interactions. Violation of WD, by practices like overwork, bullying, abuse, humiliation and poor conditions, is a collective experience for millions of workers in UK companies' global and domestic supply chains. Media, civil society and academic reports anecdotally show that there is a connection between a company's sourcing practices and violation of WD in the supply chain.
Besides influencing the lives of workers in supply chains, violation of WD has serious and direct implications for UK companies' productivity. It can cause significant negative impacts on workers' commitment, health and wellbeing with a consequent decrease in supplier performance. The productivity of UK companies' can be negatively impacted, as a result.
WD is a key underlying principle of current business, government and civil society interventions aimed at protecting labour rights in supply chains. Yet, they fail to measure and manage WD in supply chains effectively. This is because these interventions rely on 'one-size-fits-all' labour standards and human rights conventions. In contrast, WD is a profoundly personal experience, and generic interventions can only address it to a limited extent.
Despite extensive interest in WD in supply chains, to date, there is no systematic investigation of how a company's sourcing practices contribute to perceptions of WD for workers in their supplier facilities or its knock-on effect on the suppliers' performance. Hence, there is a clear need to understand the relationship between sourcing practices, WD and supplier performance to build a compelling evidence base for further academic research as well as interventions for improving WD in supply chains.
The project, co-created in consultation with policymakers, businesses, civil societies, media and workers, aims to address this need by developing a Dignity-led Supply Chain Management (DSCM) framework, which makes WD central to supply chain management. Using a novel and ambitious research design consisting of interviews, drawings, surveys and field experiments, research will be conducted in two radically contrasting sourcing locations of UK companies (UK and India) and work settings (Information Technology Products & Services, and Textile & Garments). Across these settings, the project will investigate: (1) what WD means to workers in supplier facilities; (2) how, when and why sourcing practices of UK companies influence perceptions of WD for workers in supplier facilities; (3) how, when and why workers' perceptions of WD influence supplier performance; and (4) the collaborative design of impactful toolkits and policies for improving WD in supply chains.
I have developed this fellowship not only to complete this ambitious project and improve the lives of vulnerable workers and the economy but also to develop a skill set, network and team that will make me a global leader in the field of sustainable supply chain management by 2030. Throughout the project, I will closely engage with international academic experts in management, cultural psychology, political science and law, and experts in business and human rights policy and practice in United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Business & Human Rights Group, Thomsen Reuters Foundation, Confederation of Indian Industry and Twentyfifty.
By contributing to the improvement of WD in supply chains, my innovative DSCM framework will have a significant impact on the academic field but more importantly on the lives of millions of workers in the UK, India and other countries who are directly involved in developing our products and services. Besides, the DSCM framework will help to address the most concerning productivity challenges facing the UK economy.
Besides influencing the lives of workers in supply chains, violation of WD has serious and direct implications for UK companies' productivity. It can cause significant negative impacts on workers' commitment, health and wellbeing with a consequent decrease in supplier performance. The productivity of UK companies' can be negatively impacted, as a result.
WD is a key underlying principle of current business, government and civil society interventions aimed at protecting labour rights in supply chains. Yet, they fail to measure and manage WD in supply chains effectively. This is because these interventions rely on 'one-size-fits-all' labour standards and human rights conventions. In contrast, WD is a profoundly personal experience, and generic interventions can only address it to a limited extent.
Despite extensive interest in WD in supply chains, to date, there is no systematic investigation of how a company's sourcing practices contribute to perceptions of WD for workers in their supplier facilities or its knock-on effect on the suppliers' performance. Hence, there is a clear need to understand the relationship between sourcing practices, WD and supplier performance to build a compelling evidence base for further academic research as well as interventions for improving WD in supply chains.
The project, co-created in consultation with policymakers, businesses, civil societies, media and workers, aims to address this need by developing a Dignity-led Supply Chain Management (DSCM) framework, which makes WD central to supply chain management. Using a novel and ambitious research design consisting of interviews, drawings, surveys and field experiments, research will be conducted in two radically contrasting sourcing locations of UK companies (UK and India) and work settings (Information Technology Products & Services, and Textile & Garments). Across these settings, the project will investigate: (1) what WD means to workers in supplier facilities; (2) how, when and why sourcing practices of UK companies influence perceptions of WD for workers in supplier facilities; (3) how, when and why workers' perceptions of WD influence supplier performance; and (4) the collaborative design of impactful toolkits and policies for improving WD in supply chains.
I have developed this fellowship not only to complete this ambitious project and improve the lives of vulnerable workers and the economy but also to develop a skill set, network and team that will make me a global leader in the field of sustainable supply chain management by 2030. Throughout the project, I will closely engage with international academic experts in management, cultural psychology, political science and law, and experts in business and human rights policy and practice in United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Business & Human Rights Group, Thomsen Reuters Foundation, Confederation of Indian Industry and Twentyfifty.
By contributing to the improvement of WD in supply chains, my innovative DSCM framework will have a significant impact on the academic field but more importantly on the lives of millions of workers in the UK, India and other countries who are directly involved in developing our products and services. Besides, the DSCM framework will help to address the most concerning productivity challenges facing the UK economy.
Organisations
- University of Bath (Lead Research Organisation)
- British Sociological Association (BSA) (Collaboration)
- Confederation of Indian Industry (Project Partner)
- Thomson Reuters Foundation (Project Partner)
- Twentyfifty (Project Partner)
- Indian Institute of Management Indore (Project Partner)
- United Nations Development Programme (Project Partner)
People |
ORCID iD |
| Vivek Soundararajan (Principal Investigator / Fellow) |
Publications
Bapuji H
(2023)
Invisible Inequalities: Barriers, Challenges, and Opportunities
in Journal of Management
Kumar A
(2024)
Unequal Worlds: Management Education and Inequalities
in Academy of Management Learning & Education
Soundararajan V
(2023)
The dark side of the cascading compliance model in global value chains
in Journal of Industrial and Business Economics
Soundararajan V
(2025)
Towards a Systemic Approach for Improving Working Conditions in Global Supply Chains: An Integrative Review and Research Agenda
in Academy of Management Annals
Soundararajan V
(2024)
Organizational Engagement With Poverty: A Review and Reorientation
in Journal of Management
Soundararajan V
(2023)
Inequalities in Research Translation: Toward more Equitable Pathways to Impact
in Journal of Management Studies
| Description | KEY FINDING 1: Output from a scoping study in India's Textile Mills Output: Report titled 'The Relationship Between Sourcing Practices and Working Conditions in Lower-Tier Apparel Supply Chains' is available on the project website. About the report: This research was conduced as a scoping study to set the foundation for further research in the garment industry in both India and the UK. The report shows that the sourcing practices of brands have only limited influence on working condition in textile mills. This is because: 1) there is no direct contractual relationship between brands and most textile mills in Tamil Nadu; 2) mills operate as a separate industry; 3) intermediaries such as yarn traders are present and intermediate between mills and exporters; 4) the yarn production process is highly standardised. KEY FINDING 2: Output from research in Leicester's garment industry Output: Report titled 'What happened after the Boohoo Scandal? A Multi-Stakeholder Perspective of the Garment Industry in Leicester' is available on the project website. About the report: This report documents the impact of the Leicester factory closures from a multi-stakeholder perspective. Based on fieldwork conducted from April-July 2023, we analysed the current situation in Leicester from the perspectives of workers, manufacturers, interventions, and brands. This report is informed by qualitative interviews conducted with current and former workers, manufacturers, and state and civil society actors as well as insights drawn from group interviews conducted with current and former garment workers. In total, we spoke to 67 participants. In addition, we gathered insights by observing community meetings, events, public spaces, protests, and factories. This report provides a summary of the Boohoo exposé, which forms the backdrop of this research; perspective of the situation from the view of the workers, manufacturers, brands; and an outline of interventions taken to address working conditions in supply chain. The report also outlines certain recommendations for different stakeholders. KEY FINDING 3: Output from the integrative literature review of working conditions in global supply chains Output: In global supply chains, subpar working conditions are a critical issue affecting organizations, workers, civil society, and policymakers alike. Our objective is to evaluate the approaches to improve working conditions within global supply chains and their implications. Through a comprehensive review of 330 high-quality journal articles and 20 books published between 1995 and January 2024 that integrates insights from various social science disciplines, we offer a fresh perspective on this challenge. We begin by identifying factors at multiple levels-supply chain, workplace, individual, and institutional-that contribute to poor working conditions, and explore how these factors, in some configuration, contribute to poor working conditions in different sample archetypes of global supply chains. We then present the factors driving lead organizations to improve working conditions in their global supply chains. Next, we dissect the transactional and relational approaches commonly implemented by lead organizations, assessing their mechanisms and effectiveness. Our review indicates that these approaches have limited success. As an alternative, we synthesize diverse insights to introduce a systemic approach grounded in three pivotal mechanisms: cooperation, recognition, and evolution. This approach aims to tackle the multifaceted factors affecting working conditions. To advance the systemic approach, we propose critical research questions that pave the way for future studies. KEY FINDING 4: Output from research on respect from the perspective of workers in garment supply chains Output: Report titled "What is respect for workers in global supply chains? Voices of workers in garment exports About the report: The objective of this report is to explore the concepts of respect and disrespect from the perspective of workers in global garment supply chains. To achieve this, we draw on the experiences of local and migrant workers employed in the garment industry in Tirupur, India. This report is based on 68 interviews in total as well as observations and relevant documents. Our analysis reveals three critical insights into how these workers perceive respect and disrespect. First, workers believe that respect and disrespect do not stem from organizational policies or standards. Instead, they are embedded in the daily interactions workers have with other organizational members, including coworkers, supervisors, managers, and owners. Second, workers perceive respect and disrespect as reciprocal processes. For them, these concepts arise not only from the actions and speech of other organizational members but also from their own actions and speech. Third, workers view respect and disrespect as distinct concepts rather than two opposite ends of a single continuum. Our analysis also highlights the broader implications of respect and disrespect. Notably, the consequences of these experiences extend beyond workers' professional lives, significantly influencing their personal lives as well. |
| Exploitation Route | About key finding 1: We are hoping that the recommendation in the report for brands, textile mills, policy makers and civil society organisations will be useful will be useful in improving working conditions in textile mills, specifically in the Global South context. Moreover, the findings of the report aided in our understanding of designing qualitative field research in India and the UK through an enhanced knowledge of the functioning of the garment industry. The report has been downloaded 4854 times from our website. About key finding 2: We are hoping that the recommendations outlined in the report, for example, for the brands, suppliers, media and the government can be used by local advocacy groups to improve working conditions in Leicester's supply chain. The report is also being used as a case study to teach undergraduate students at the University of Bath. In addition, we were contacted by one student journalist for an interview who is interested in knowing more about the research based on our recommendations for the media. Overall, the English version of the report has been downloaded 2704 times, the Gujarati version 872 times, the Punjabi version 852 times, and the Hindi version 787 times. About key finding 3: This review is among the first to capture key insights into working conditions in global supply chains while proposing a new approach to improving them. It has garnered significant attention from academics, and we are currently working on generating practitioner-based insights for broader application. About key finding 4: This report has just been released, and we aim to capture its impact in the coming months. It is unique and novel in that it moves beyond examining workers' exploitation solely in the workplace, instead exploring their perceptions of respect and how this shapes their understanding of working conditions. We are in the process of developing mechanisms to systematically track policy citations for all of the above mentioned four key findings. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy Financial Services and Management Consultancy Government Democracy and Justice Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology Retail |
| URL | https://embed-dignity.com/outputs/ |
| Description | Our research on the aftermath of the 2020 Boohoo scandal critiques the common practice of cutting ties with suppliers to address poor working conditions and modern slavery in global supply chains. By involving multiple stakeholders, it reveals the widespread impact of factory closures on both workers and suppliers. Reporting in four languages ensured inclusivity, while collaboration with community groups raised public awareness. The research also gave suppliers, often unfairly blamed, a voice through public consultation. Expert input to policy debate and formulation: Dr. Manoj Dias-Abey, Senior Lecturer at the University of Bristol Law School, utilised the report in a commissioned study for the Trade Union Congress, focusing on international best practices for addressing significant issues in British employment law enforcement. He referenced the report to highlight the deficiencies in responses from both public and private sectors regarding the scandal. Additionally, Cassie Farmer, Assistant Research and Policy Officer at the GMB Union, forwarded the report to the Labour Party in the UK. MP Claudia Webbe also cited the report in an article for the Morning Star, discussing the superficial reforms implemented by Boohoo and the resultant unemployment of workers. Increased public awareness and engagement: The report received widespread acclaim from various stakeholders for its representation of the community from a multi-stakeholder perspective and for its rigour and accessibility in four languages, potentially increasing public awareness. Altaf Ahmed, Business Support Manager at Leicester City Council, praised the report for its use of "simple and plain English, its smooth reading flow, and its well-structured format". He noted that the report" accommodates feedback from a range of stakeholders, including employees, manufacturers, and supporting organizations". This is further evidenced by the number of downloads on the website: a total of 5215 downloads. Saj Khan, Founder of the Apparel and Textile Manufacturers Federation and a manufacturer himself, remarked that the report "has done an excellent job in effectively representing the community from a third-party assessment perspective" and has shared it with manufacturers in the federation. Further, the founder of a community organisation Highfields Centre running the Fashion Advice Bureau Leicester since the 2020 scandal to support workers praised the report for its "thorough research and dedication, indicating that it could influence policy development in the UK and Leicester". Teaching and research: The research and report have been utilised in teaching. The University of Leicester's Migration, Mobility, and Citizenship Network Reading Group reviewed and discussed the report on March 13, 2024. Arwen Joyce, a Lecturer in Law at the University of Leicester, will be incorporating the report as a case study into her lectures on labour migration for her third-year immigration law students. Professor Bernard Ryan, Professor of Migration Law at Leicester Law School, remarked, "The report was excellent, capturing recent developments in Leicester's sector. It highlighted the genuine dilemma where concerns about regulation and enforcement may not always lead to the best outcomes for workers, particularly migrant workers and those from ethnic minorities. The importance of providing genuine access to alternative local employment also stood out to me. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2024 |
| Sector | Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology |
| Impact Types | Societal Policy & public services |
| Description | Support grant |
| Amount | £1,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | British Sociological Association (BSA) |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 05/2022 |
| End | 05/2023 |
| Description | Slavery and Critical Slavery group |
| Organisation | British Sociological Association (BSA) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Dr Pankhuri Agarwal received the award to co-convene a study group at the British Sociological Association. Group URL: https://www.britsoc.co.uk/groups/study-groups/slavery-and-modern-slavery-study-sms-group/ |
| Collaborator Contribution | Dr Samuel Okyere at the University of Bristol and Dr Angelo Martins Junior at the University of Birmingham are the two other co-convenors of the group. The British Sociological Association provides administrative and events support. |
| Impact | Online launch event and roundtable - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/roundtable-and-launch-slavery-and-modern-slavery-group-tickets-528465513577 |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Conference Organisation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We co-organized the 2nd Global Conference on Caste in Business Studies at the University of Bath in June 2024, featuring a keynote by Prof. Surinder Jodhka. The conference attracted academics from India, the US, the UK, and beyond, garnering international acclaim as the only forum dedicated to discussing caste within business and management studies. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Conference Presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | In June 2023, we presented a paper on 'Familiar Othering at Work: a case study of migrant workers in India' at the International Association of Business Studies Conference at the University of Bath. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Conference presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We presented our paper titled There is no "modern slavery" in business: Political Rhetoric and Exploitation in Global Supply Chains at the 18th Organization Studies Workshop in Greece, May 2024. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Dignity Stories |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We collect, curate, and publish stories on people's experiences of dignity in the workplace. These can be in any format - videos, blog posts, drawings, etc. We aim to make a larger repository of dignity stories from across the world. So far, we have published 13 stories with nine in 2022 and four in 2023. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |
| URL | https://embed-dignity.com/stories/ |
| Description | Embed Dignity Twitter Page |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We launched our Twitter page in March 2022. We frequently communicate with a broader audience. According to Twitter Analytics, in the past 90 days, our tweets have received over 26000 impressions, 202 link clicks, and 179 likes. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |
| URL | https://twitter.com/embeddignity?lang=en |
| Description | Embed Dignity Webinar Series |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We launched an online seminar series to unite scholars researching workplace dignity worldwide. The series encompassed five webinars in 2023. A number of academics from different universities joined the seminar. Below is a list of the webinars: 19th January 2023: The caste of leadership by Dr Pardeep Singh Attri, Department of Economics and Business at Central European University, Vienna, Austria 18th May 2023: Transnational Production, housing and control over migrant labour by Dr Rutvica Andrijasevic, School of Management, University of Bristol 20th July 2023: 'It is not you, it is us' A bottom up view of dignity by Vibhor Mathur, Department of Social and Policy Sciences, University of Bath 21st September 2023: The pursuit and practice of freedom by sex workers in Brazil by Dr Julio Davies, School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of Bristol 23rd November 2023: Misogyny and Organisation Studies by Dr Lauren McCarthy, Bayes Business School |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://embed-dignity.com/our-events/ |
| Description | Embed Dignity Website |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We launched our website in March 2022. The website has many interesting aspects, including outputs, events, stories, and information on our outstanding advisory board members and partners. In addition, the website is accessible in 43 international languages. According to Google Analytics, the website received 568 users and 1020 pageviews in the last three months, mainly from the UK, USA and India. Since 14th March 2023, we have had over 1300 website visits from across the world. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |
| URL | https://embed-dignity.com/ |
| Description | Embed Dignity YouTube channel |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We launched our YouTube channel on December 15 2022. We have uploaded three videos so far, which have garnered over 300 views in total. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/@embeddignity/featured |
| Description | Global Early-Career Accelerator for Representation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | This year, we launched the inaugural cohort of GEAR (Global Early-Career Accelerator for Representation), a program dedicated to enhancing the representation of researchers from low- and middle-income (LMI) countries in the field of business and society. The program garnered significant global interest, with 50 applicants. Ultimately, 19 scholars were selected to participate in the virtual program. As part of this initiative, two participants will be invited to the School of Management in 2025 at the University of Bath to further develop their papers for publication. This milestone underscores our commitment to fostering inclusivity and amplifying diverse voices in academic research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.bath.ac.uk/campaigns/global-early-career-accelerator-for-representation-gear/ |
| Description | Invited Talk |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Professor Vivek Soundararajan was invited to talk on 'Inequality, development and global value chains' at the Henley Business School International Business Master Class. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Invited Talk |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Professor Vivek Soundararajan was invited to speak on 'Sourcing practices and working conditions in lower-tier supply chains' at the London College of Fashion. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Invited Talk |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | In May 2023, Dr Pankhuri Agarwal was invited to speak on 'Research on Sensitive Topics' at the Qualitative Research Symposium at the University of Bristol. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Invited presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | In June 2023, Dr Pankhuri Agarwal was invited to speak on 'the challenges of digitalisation for internal migrant workers in the South Asia' at the King's Lau China Institute, University of London. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Keynote |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Professor Vivek Soundararajan was invited to give a keynote on 'Inequality and global value chains' at the International Labour Process Conference in Glasgow, UK. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.sbs.strath.ac.uk/apps/feeds/news?id=2538 |
| Description | Media article |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Based on our report on research in Leicester's garment industry, we published a media piece highlighting a summary of the findings so that it is comprehensible and accessible to wider audience. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/beyond-trafficking-and-slavery/did-crying-modern-slavery-in-leicest... |
| Description | Panel invitation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Pankhuri Agarwal was invited as a panelist to comment on the Tobacco Slave film screening during the Tobacco Control Research Group's event at the ESRC Festival of Social Science 2024, held in October 2024. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Paper presentation at a conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | In August 2023, we presented a paper titled 'Familiar othering at work: internal migrant workers in India' at the Academy of Management Annual Conference in Boston, USA. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/AMPROC.2023.18286abstract |
| Description | Presentation at a conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | From 23rd and 24rth January, 2023 we participated and presented our working paper titled 'Familiar othering at work: a case study of internal migrant workers in India's garment industry' at the fairness at Work Conference, Work and Equalities Institute, Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester. Our presentation was attended by around 12-14 people and also sparked questions after our talk in related research fields. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.wei.manchester.ac.uk/connect/conference/ |
| Description | Press Release |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Based on the report "What Happened After the Boohoo Scandal," the University of Bath released a press statement titled Response to Boohoo Scandal Failed Workers It Should Have Protected, Shows New Report. The release garnered significant attention from media outlets and was further published on platforms like Just Style (https://www.just-style.com/news/boohoo-accused-of-face-saving-changes-post-panorama-scandal/), Fashion United (https://fashionunited.uk/news/business/timeline-behind-boohoo-s-boulevard-of-broken-promises/2024022374280), and Morning Star Online (https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/it%E2%80%99s-time-hold-%E2%80%98fast-fashion%E2%80%99-account). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.bath.ac.uk/announcements/response-to-boohoo-scandal-failed-workers-it-should-have-protec... |
| Description | Press Release of a research report |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | A press release titled 'Response to Boohoo scandal failed workers it should have protected, shows new report' was published by the University of Bath PR Team on 8th February 2024. The intent was to reach the media, students, practitioners, brands and participants of our report titled 'What happened after the Boohoo scandal? A Multi-Stakeholder Perspective of the Garment Industry in Leicester'. This led to two online platforms namely JustStyle and ScienceX writing about the report and one request for interview by an investigative journalist. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.bath.ac.uk/announcements/response-to-boohoo-scandal-failed-workers-it-should-have-protec... |
| Description | Professional Development Workshop at a Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | e organised a Professional Development Workshop, 'Decolonising Field Research in a Neoliberal Economy' at the Academy of Management Annual Meeting in Chicago in August 2024 where the participants from across the world acknowledge the need for attention to decolonising field research in business and management studies. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Stakeholder Consultation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | A stakeholder consultation, titled, 'Employment, Welfare, and the Garment Industry in Leicester' was held in Leicester in July 2024, with 31 participants, including former workers interviewed for the report, civil society organisations, Leicester City Council official, and union representatives. The event served as a platform for discussing the findings of the earlier report and exploring future steps. Participants expressed that bringing diverse stakeholders together in one room was a unique and valuable initiative, as it had not been done before in such a format. The event was highly regarded for its ability to foster cross-sector dialogue and facilitate collaboration among key actors in the garment industry. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Thandora (Newsletter) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Our newsletters are called Thandora, which is a drum used by a messenger in pre-modern Indian society to announce a message to the community. Thandora directly reaches over 150 individuals from various sectors, including our research participants. Indirectly, it is shared via Twitter and Linkedin for greater reach. Two newsletters were released ion May and November 2022. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://embed-dignity.com/outputs/newsletters/ |
| Description | Webinar |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | With the advent of the digital economy, the IT industry has become one of the largest employers in the world. Nevertheless, perhaps because of the white-collared nature of the work, there is not much discussion on the topic of the dignity of employees in the IT sector. The aim of this event was to bring together relevant actors and map different stakeholders and perspectives of dignity in the IT industry. Some questions that were deliberated in the event were: How important is dignity to the sustainability of the industry? How is the dignity of employees violated in the IT industry? How is the dignity of employees ascertained and improved in the IT industry? How are different stakeholders contributing to the improvement of the dignity of IT employees? Speakers included: 1. Prof Nancy Harding, University of Bath on 'Chauvinism and misogyny in software development in Western Europe'. 2. Rishi Sher Singh, Sustainability Specialist on 'Nuances of dignity in IT value chains'. 3. Gurpal Khurana, CEO, Experiences Digital on 'dignity in mid-sized IT business'. 4. Pardeep Singh Attri, Central European University on 'Epistemic justice and Dalits in IT'. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Workshop Presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | On 27th March2023, our team was invited to share their views on interdisciplinary research at the Centre for Business, Organisations and Society at the University of Bath. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Workshop presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We presented our paper titled 'Lock(ed)down Forever: Prolonged Work-from-Home as a Source of (Un)Freedom, Global Production Networks in Polycrisis at the University of Sussex Business School in June 2024. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |