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Editorial Essay: Introduction to a Special Issue on Improving Private Regulation of Labor in Global Supply Chains: Theory and Evidence

As we write this introductory essay on private regulation in global supply chains, we are in the midst of a pandemic caused by COVID-19. Beyond the health care crisis, the economic disruption is devastating. Millions of workers in global supply chains are losing their jobs as companies cut production in response to declining demand. This trend is especially true of the apparel supply chain, which is the key focus of the articles in this special issue. As Mark Anner’s timely survey in March 2020 suggests, more than 70% of apparel workers furloughed or laid off in Bangladesh were sent home without pay, and less than 20% were paid their severance pay—a violation of the basic private regulation principles laid down in the codes of conduct of most apparel retailers (Anner 2020). Similar stories emanate from other apparel exporting countries, such as Cambodia, Indonesia, and Ethiopia. Around the globe, economic shocks transmitted through global supply chains are wreaking havoc on vulnerable workers who lack basic protections. The current crisis brings into sharp relief the inability of both transnational and national institutions to protect millions of workers in jobs tied to the global economy through supply chains. Private voluntary regulation grew out of an effort to find alternative ways to improve labor conditions for these workers. As is well known, activists leveraged the reputational concerns of large firms and placed pressure on them to regulate the labor practices of their suppliers. In response, leading firms in the apparel