Trade group slams global safety pact
National Retail Federation slams global safety plan for Bangladesh
NEW YORK (AP) -- The National Retail Federation, the nation's largest retail trade group, is slamming a global pact to improve safety conditions in Bangladesh, backed by mostly European retailers. At the same time the association is offering few details to an alternative plan it's pushing that it believes is more flexible.
More than two dozen brands have agreed to sign on to a five-year, legally binding contract that requires that they help pay for fire safety and building improvements in Bangladesh. Notably missing from the pact are U.S. firms, except PVH, the New York-based parent company of Tommy Hilfiger.
In a release Wednesday, the retail trade group criticized the pact for having a "one-size-fits-all" approach and says it leaves retailers open to legal action.
