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 PAY
BACK ITS DUE TO THE SOCIETY
Paying back its dues to the Society Singer Sewing Academy:
SINGER
SEWING ACADEMY
The
Sewing Academy is an embodiment of Singer’s social commitment
and its resolve to bring the company closer to the people and
the community. The Academy,
- extends its services to the underprivileged women of the society
for income generation.
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keeps the art of machine sewing alive and well.
- helps
the Franchise School teachers earn a reasonable income from the
fees while they give hands on training on Sewing, Embroidery,
Stitching and Cutting to the students.
- creates
an opportunity for students who pass out successfully to open
their own Franchise Schools in their community, thereby keeping
the cycle of sewing -learning - income generation alive.
Currently,
a total of 73 Franchise Sewing Schools located in different parts
of the country extends support to the Sewing Academy. The sewing
instructor is usually a student who has completed a training course
at the Sewing School. She is provided a Sewing Machine free at
the time the school is opened.
On
an average each year, the Sewing Instructors provide training
to approximately 2000 students. A student, upon completion of
a training course, is provided with a Certificate in a simple
ceremony. This Certificate from the Singer Sewing Academy is held
in high esteem by both the Government and Bangladesh Garments
Manufacturer and Exporters Association. A considerable number
of Singer Sewing School trained students are now working in different
garments factories, while many others are retained by local Garment
Industries/Tailoring Shops. In some cases, students work at home
and supply garments to local boutique shops.
EMPLOYMENT
OF THE UNDERPRIVILEGED
UCEP(Underprivileged Children’s Education Program) works with
the underprivileged children for their upliftment. This is done
by providing technical training on different trades.
On completion of this training the trainees are absorbed in different
organizations. Singer can proudly say that all the assembly crew
working at Singer Electronic Complex are from UCEP. Recruiting
from UCEP is an on going process.
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ILO
CHILD LABOR ELIMINATION PROGRAM
In
2000 the European Union and the United States of America took
a strong stand to stop child labor (age below 14 years) in the
garments industry. Consequently, a huge number of children were
laid off in many countries, including Bangladesh. These children
were school dropouts and had found employment in garment industries
to support their families. The laid off children were picked up
by the Geneva based International Labor Organization (ILO) which
came up with a plan to develop their technical skills.
ILO decided to go for sewing, cutting and embroidery training.
Reflecting the spirit of social commitment, Singer undertook a
joint partnership agreement with ILO for training the displaced
under-aged garment workers so that they could develop the necessary
expertise in sewing.
Under the partnership agreement, a training program was organized
where there was virtually no dropout. This is quite an unusual
phenomenon considering the past history of drop out of almost
all participants. Care was taken to ensure that every student
was present in the classroom. Even if some one did not turn up
on a particular day, the teachers investigated the reason, and
helped the student to join the training the next day.
At
the end of the program, Certificates are awarded in a function
which is attended by ILO Officials. The Certificate of Completion
is provided to all participants and is held in high esteem by
the companies willing to recruit trained personnel in Sewing.
And for the students, it creates opportunities for a better pay
package.
OTHER
ACTIVITIES
Singer, as part of its social commitment, has been extending its
support to a number of social projects in different forms. Singer
also contributes to the promotion of sports and culture in Bangladesh.
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Copyright © 2004
SINGER BANGLADESH LIMITED ® All rights reserved.