The Role of Southern Civil Society Organisations in Shaping the Governance of Labour Standards

Civil society organisations (CSOs) have been shown to play a pivotal role in the development of labour standards within global production networks where goods that are produced in the Global South are consumed in the Global North. Yet, the increase in South-South trade and the growth of emerging markets has meant that the geographies of consumption are changing. Therefore, it is vital to understand how Southern CSOs are shaping the governance of labour standards in these new markets. This leads to the overall question: What is the role of Southern CSOs in shaping the governance of labour standards in Southern markets?

Empirical evidence demonstrates that Southern civil society organisations (CSOs) have attempted to play a role in the development of labour standards within the domestic market for Indian tea. Yet, their success in creating formal institutions of governance has largely been unsuccessful. This is due to the conflicting interests of global actors who also seek to govern labour standards in the global production network, in addition to the constraints faced by Indian CSOs within their own national institutional environment.

Using three examples of voluntary multi-stakeholder initiatives in the domestic market, this paper will investigate the interplay between Southern CSOs and Northern actors in their responses and reactions to ‘global’ privately-governed labour standards in the European and Indian markets. It will demonstrate how Southern CSOs have attempted to engage, challenge and (re)construct contemporary configurations of public and private institutions involved in the governance of labour standards for Southern markets. However, it is not only Southern – Northern CSO relationships across the geography of the global production network which matter, but also the broader cultural, political and economic environments in which these Southern CSOs are embedded. These factors determine the locus of institutionalisation.

As demonstrated in this paper, Southern CSO success in shaping the governance of labour standards in Southern markets has been varied. The factors that determine the success of CSO-led efforts appear to lie within their responses to the changing political economy of tea production, as well as their ability to appeal to both state and commercial interests. Ultimately, success is shown to depend upon the ability to improve and support pre-existing public regulation, as well as the reduction of transaction costs for lead firms. Therefore, the agency for CSOs to act independently of other interests is arguably limited within the Indian context.