ALDI takes clear steps to fulfil its living wage commitment
A year after it signed the voluntary living wage commitment by the German Society for International Cooperation (Deutsche Gesellschaft für internationale Zusammenarbeit - GIZ), the ALDI SOUTH Group has identified the next steps in support of living wages and living income. Members of the “Working Group on Living Income and Living Wages” will implement a joint pilot project, which aim to support a decent standard of living for banana farm workers in Ecuador.
A key goal of the project is to support worker representation and establish monitoring mechanisms, which are able to verify living wage and labour standards. The aim of the project is not simply requiring stricter standards, but to specifically support the development towards living wages through targeted actions and sourcing practices. The project will be officially launched by March 2021 with a first phase focusing on developing programs that can be applied in the subsequent phases and identifying ways to scale up the project to other countries and markets.
Beyond the pilot project, the working group strives to replicate the lessons learned in other supply chains and to establish tools for the verification of living wages and income. Collaboration is key to ensuring an effective and lasting change and the ALDI SOUTH Group is committed to working with other retailers and industry stakeholders to ensure that this positive change can be implemented in all supply chains.
A living income and wage contribute towards the protection of human rights and the fight against poverty and child labour. Our participation will support and promote the establishment of an income and wage standard that meets the cost of living in the global agricultural supply chains.
“We consider the joint engagement of German retailers as an important step towards supply chains, which improve the living standards of the workers. This working group, will help develop living income and living wages in agricultural supply chains, strengthen human rights and tackle poverty”
- Anke Ehlers (Managing Director Corporate Responsibility International of the ALDI SOUTH Group).
