WE@WORK - RespectVN's unique model that wins Global Women Fund

In 2017, WE@WORK was recognised by Global Fund for Women to become "An integrated and sustainable accountability system to prevent and respond to gender-based violence (GBV) in garment factories in Vietnam, in particular sexual harassment and sexual violence".

1. What is Global Women Fund's award?

2. What is WE@WORK?

3. Why did Global Women Fund select RespectVN?

A grant of USD 500,000 was awarded to Respect Vietnam and its counterpart - Care International - to achieve the project's goals by implementing WE@WORK

1. What is Global Women Fund's award?

Global Fund for Women envisions a world where movements for gender justice have transformed power and privilege for a few into equity and equality for all. The Fund was founded over 30 years ago to fill a critical gap in funding for local women's rights organizations. Today, the Fund is the leading funder of gender justice organizations, initiatives and movements worldwide.

A grant of USD 500,000 was awarded to the Consortium called P2P (From Policy to Practices) led by Care International & Respect Vietnam to implement WE@WORK to achieve the following Three Outcomes:

1. Improved access to labour rights and protections of women factory workers in 15 garment factories, through introduction of GBV prevention and response into Respect Vietnam's Integrated Conflict Management and Workplace Efficiency Model (WE@WORK);

2. Strengthened capacity and voice of women leaders in the WE@WORK package; and

3. Strengthened regulatory environment and improved protections for workers against GBV in the workplace, through advocacy.

2. What is WE@WORK?

WE@WORK - Integrated Conflict Management and Workplace Efficiency Model - was developed by RespectVN based on RespectVN's work with 100 manufacturers across Vietnam from 2011 to 2017.

The Model aims to collect the real-time data & decisions of Integrated Conflict Management within each manufacturer & turn them into labor & business policy suggestions for employers & employees' representatives:

1. WE@WORK encourages the mutual understanding of integrated conflict management at work by both employers & employees, promoting the installment of the system in each workplace for both sides to collect real-time data & make decisions of handling conflicts & disputes based on these comprehensive, well-analysed & fair data;

2. WE@WORK provides semi-technology approach to cut down the workload & time of manually handling grievances, complaints & promoting solution-based suggestions via both anonymous & direct communication at work;

3. WE@WORK strengthens regulatory environment and improves continuous efforts from both employers and employees in solving their problems, analyse root causes & building sound workplace relations from within;

WE@WORK - Integrated Conflict Management and Workplace Efficiency Model - was developed by RespectVN since 2013

3. Why did Global Women Fund select RespectVN?

Unlike other training & capacity building projects, WE@WORK introduces the first time the concepts of real-time perceptions & behaviours by both employees & employers during their interactions related to Gender-based violence (GBV) & sexual harassment at work.

Real-time perceptions are individuals & collectives' believes & awarenesses towards gender equity during their working hours, instead of during they are interviewed or surveyed, when they, especially workers, tend to hesitate to express their own thoughts & opinions due to pressures of losing their jobs, their incomes or relationship at work.

Real-time behaviours reflect individuals & collectives' decisions to act against mostly, unfair labor practices, which defend mainly on the availability & effectiveness of any system of grievance handling, suggestion welcoming or conflict addressing in their workplaces (see the left comic).

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Based on its rich experiences & real-time interventions with both employers & employees in hundreds of workplaces, Respect Vietnam has been pioneering in addressing unfair labor practices, including GBV & sexual harassment, at lens of both groups of beneficiaries of Integrated Conflict/Innovation Management. The Global fund of Women, like other grantors, recognised the unique approach WE@WORK in comparison with other conventional approaches such as training, massive surveys or public propaganda.

In an unfair working environment where abuse of authority is tolerated, GBV & sexual harassment become "untouchable" areas for victims who are given no autonomy to say no or to report misconducts. Conquering GBV as unfair labor practices via individual & organizational behavior management is a sustainable approach that any gender-enlightening & people-centric organizations seek to grow in the long run.

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The Project was supposed to introduce the similar EASYFORM approach “Worker Guidance on How to Use EASYFORM Suggestion Boxes” that RespectVN developed since 2013, together with other tools developed afterwards. Click in the button below for more information

GENDER ENLIGHTENING

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