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The Politics of Code Enforcement and Implementation in Vietnam’s Apparel and Footwear Factories

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  • Kim, Jee Young

Abstract

What happens when transnational private regulation of labor standards is put into practice on the factory floor? This article addresses this question with field research data on Vietnam’s apparel and footwear industries. The Vietnamese case shows that code enforcement and implementation are highly political processes fraught with conflicts and attempts at evasion. The consequences, moreover, contradict the conventional wisdom of low regulatory effectiveness; heightened legal awareness and strengthened labor law enforcement may result from these processes. This study illustrates two mechanisms (conflict and ritualistic compliance) that can raise the effectiveness of private regulation.

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  • Kim, Jee Young, 2013. "The Politics of Code Enforcement and Implementation in Vietnam’s Apparel and Footwear Factories," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 286-295.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:45:y:2013:i:c:p:286-295
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2012.12.004
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Mia Mahmudur Rahim, 2017. "Improving Social Responsibility in RMG Industries Through a New Governance Approach in Laws," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 143(4), pages 807-826, July.
    3. Chikako Oka, 2016. "Improving working conditions in garment supply chains: The role of unions in Cambodia," Post-Print hal-02952169, HAL.
    4. Thomas Dietz & Janina Grabs & Andrea Estrella Chong, 2021. "Mainstreamed voluntary sustainability standards and their effectiveness: Evidence from the Honduran coffee sector," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 15(2), pages 333-355, April.
    5. Jean-Christophe Graz & Nicole Helmerich & Cécile Prébandier, 2020. "Hybrid Production Regimes and Labor Agency in Transnational Private Governance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 162(2), pages 307-321, March.
    6. Berliner, Daniel & Greenleaf, Anne & Lake, Milli & Noveck, Jennifer, 2015. "Building Capacity, Building Rights? State Capacity and Labor Rights in Developing Countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 127-139.
    7. Blanton, Robert G. & Blanton, Shannon Lindsey & Peksen, Dursun, 2015. "Financial Crises and Labor: Does Tight Money Loosen Labor Rights?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 1-12.
    8. Chikako Oka, 2016. "Improving Working Conditions in Garment Supply Chains: The Role of Unions in Cambodia," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 54(3), pages 647-672, September.
    9. Kieu‐Dung Nguyen & Duc‐Thanh Nguyen & Duy‐Dat Nguyen & Van‐Anh Thi Tran, 2021. "Labour law reform and labour market outcomes in Vietnam," Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 8(2), pages 299-326, May.
    10. Venkatesh, V.G. & Zhang, Abraham & Deakins, Eric & Mani, Venkatesh, 2021. "Antecedents of social sustainability noncompliance in the Indian apparel sector," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).

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