Decent Work Coordinator January 2021

Starting date: As soon as possible and no later than April 2021 Contract Type: Full time contract for 12 months Location: Lahore (flexible), Pakistan

Application closing date: 21 February 2021

Salary: PKR 190,000 – 275,000

Background The Better Initiative (BCI) is a multi-stakeholder initiative and the largest cotton programme in the world. BCI and its Partners currently support over 2.3 million farmers in 23 countries in adopting more sustainable agricultural practices. Thanks to these efforts, Better Cotton accounts for around 22% of global cotton production. BCI works closely with stakeholders all the way from farms to fashion brands and civil society organisations, driving the cotton sector toward sustainability.

BCI’s key objectives are to:

» Reduce the environmental impact of cotton production; » Improve livelihoods and economic development in cotton producing areas; » Improve commitment to and flow of Better Cotton throughout the supply chain; » Ensure the credibility and sustainability of the Better Cotton Initiative.

For more information, see http://stories.bettercotton.com/2019AnnualReport/index.html The Better Cotton Standard System (BCSS) is at the heart of BCI’s approach and includes six main components: the Better Cotton Principles & Criteria, assurance programme, capacity building, chain of custody, monitoring and evaluation, and the Claims Framework.

The Better Cotton Principles and Criteria lay out the global definition of Better Cotton, across seven principles. They ensure that Better Cotton meets clearly defined requirements for pesticide use, water management, biodiversity, soil health, fibre quality, decent work, and management systems.

The Better Cotton programme is delivered through a network of more than 70 ‘Implementing Partners’, often local NGOs or cotton supply chain partners who recruit and train field staff and organise and work with farmers on the ground. Once farmers have demonstrated compliance with the Better Cotton Principles & Criteria, licences to sell Better Cotton are granted at the ‘Producer Unit’ level for Smallholder and Medium Farms and for each Large Farm individually.

Decent work is one of the seven Principles and Criteria of the Better Cotton Standard and requires specialised approach and attention. Agricultural sector and cotton growing specifically is considered high risk for forms of labour rights violations including forced labour of adults and children.

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Recognising the importance of these risks in cotton production, in April 2020 BCI formed a dedicated Task Force on Forced Labour and Decent Work. The Task Force comprised experts representing civil society, brands/ retailers, and research or responsible supply chains consultancies. The Task Force developed strategic recommendations to improve the effectiveness of the Better Cotton Standard System (BCSS) in identifying, preventing, mitigating, and remediating forced labour risks related to adults and children as well as addressing wider decent work challenges.

This Task Force has laid the foundation for the phased implementation of BCI’s decent work strategy at global and country levels. To carry the strategy forward BCI is recruiting a Decent Work Coordinator to lead the implementation of decent work strategy at country level as well as support global-level initiatives.

About this role BCI is seeking a motivated and highly skilled Decent Work Coordinator in Pakistan with extensive knowledge of international and national labour rights, specifically on the topic of and forced labour. BCI’s Pakistan programme works with over 539,200 farmers organised into 189 Producer Units of smallholder and medium-sized farms and approximately 11 large farms. BCI’s work is delivered through its 8 strong Implementing Partner network.

Key responsibilties will include risk assessment, stakeholder engagement, programme communication and coordination, capacity building, and assurance activities. This will include carrying out remote and on-site verification visits to farmers and projects working with BCI, with a specific focus on labour risks and worker interviews.

This role is embedded in the BCI Pakistan Implementation Team with a dotted (matrix) reporting line to the Decent Work Focal Point based in London. It is expected that roughly 60% of the role will focus on designing and implementing decent work initiatives in Pakistan (closely aligned with the global decent work strategy), and 40% of the role will work on ‘core’ operational activities; these include assessment visits to participating Producer Units, capacity building work, and data management.

Responsibilities

Stakeholder Engagement & Strategy Development – 30% » Build a network of key stakeholders at country level including labour experts, government agencies, local civil society groups and worker representative structures which can be drawn upon for participation in consultations, design and delivery of decent work activities » Identify high priority country level partners for BCI to collaborate with around its decent work strategy, and lead these relationships (with support from Country and Assurance Managers as needed) » Input into a country risk assessment methodology to enable risk-based targeting and adaptation of assurance and capacity building approaches » Coordinate desk- and field-based research by labour experts at country level to identify specific child labour and forced labour drivers and risks as well as other decent work challenges » Conduct an assessment of the labour profiles across the BCI country programme, review Producer self-assessments for risks, identify and characterise specific vulnerable groups and adapt assurance and capacity building tools to these groups

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» Input into BCI’s global decent work strategy and develop and implement country specific strategy for Pakistan in collaboration with the country team » Ensure that country programme activities, including mitigation measures and remediation approach are informed by the outcomes of the context specific risk assessment and consultation with key stakeholders » Help BCI to further its aim of establishing grievance mechanisms covering farmers and farm labour through exploring existing local worker feedback mechanisms, designing and piloting new solutions as needed » Monitor the risks and complaints received through existing feedback channels, escalating cases as needed, coordinating corrective action and facilitating remediation in collaboration with the relevant stakeholders, including government agencies, local community actors, civil society organisations and labour experts

Assurance (verification) activities – 40% » Develop a strong understanding of BCI Assurance Programme and assessment procedures » Adapt global assurance tools and processes including farmer and worker interview guides to account for context specific risks related to child labour and forced labour in Pakistan » Conduct regular assurance activities, including field-based farm assessments (or remote assessments due to travel restrictions), to verify whether farmers and projects meet all mandatory BCI requirements » Review assessment reports to assess compliance with decent work requirements and, if needed, escalate risks or instances of child labour and forced labour to the Assurance Manager » Support producers’ in developing Corrective Action Plans to close out non-conformities with the Decent Work Principle and oversee their implementation

Training and capacity building – 30% » Work with the BCI Global Implementation Team and Decent Work Focal Point to develop global a strategy for Implementing Partner capacity building and a process to assess their decent work competencies » Support the development and roll-out of Internal Management System for Decent Work by the Implementing Partners » In collaboration with the country implementation team and the capacity building lead, deliver capacity building activities to country team members and Implementing Partners (IPs) to increase their decent work competencies, including ‘train the trainer’ activities which will allow IPs to upskill field based staff » Support IPs in developing child labour and forced labour risk mitigation measures, In collaboration with the country implementation team and the capacity building lead » Support partners in identifying effective training methods and help them develop relevant training materials on decent work » Explore innovative ways to improve outreach to BCI workers, including through worker voice technology, social media, mass communication channels, etc.

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» Profile To be successful, candidates for the Decent Work Coordinator role will have the following attributes:

Qualification, Skills & Knowledge Essential University degree at Master’s level, or equivalent higher education qualification, in a relevant field Demonstrated expertise in decent work, including international rights and regulatory framework in Pakistan on forced labour and child labour, understanding specific challenges around informality and other risk factors in rural areas In-depth understanding of international and national labour rights, including child labour, forced labour drivers and risk factors, and other forms of labour rights violations in an agricultural context Knowledge of best practices in social auditing Demonstrated qualitative research skills (i.e. focus groups discussions, stakeholder interviews, survey development) Fluent in English and one provincial language in Pakistan – ability to communicate clearly and concisely in verbal and written work IT literacy, to include: Word; Excel; PowerPoint; Outlook Excellent organisation and capacity to handle a set of different priorities Willingness to travel frequently (unless travel restrictions are in place) and to carry out administrative tasks Desirable Objective and meticulous professional with the ability to multitask Academic background in rural/agricultural development, labour laws and/or human rights Knowledge of local languages and dialects

Experience

Essential At least 7 years’ working experience, with a minimum 3 years’ experience managing projects. Experience in decent work standards (ideally in agriculture), and/or monitoring/social auditing in rural environments Experience in conducting assessments and/or interviews with workers or other vulnerable groups, such as children Experience managing complex projects Effective networker Desirable Experience managing stakeholder relations, engaging with the government agencies (e.g. Ministry of labour, labour inspectorates, etc.), civil society and workers' organisations Solid understanding of agricultural production and supply chains for agricultural commodities Understanding of feedback mechanisms (for farmer/worker grievances)

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Experience directly supporting farmers, farm workers and farming communities

Working arrangements

» This is a full time (40 hours per week) position. The successful candidate will receive a one-year consultancy contract with BCI, with a 3-month initial trial period » Frequent travel (especially during the crop cycle months, June-November) to cotton production areas may be required. Travelling to the field areas may take up to 30-50% of the total work time, provided no travel restrictions are in place » The position is based at BCI’s Lahore office, unless there are Covid-19 pandemic related travel restrictions; home-based role may be considered for the ideal candidate

Applications

Interested applicants with the required attributes are asked to send, in English, a detailed CV and a brief cover letter (2 pages maximum) to BCI by email with subject “Application for Decent Work Coordinator – Pakistan” to: [email protected]

Application deadline: 21 February, 2021

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only candidates short-listed for a telephone interview will be contacted.

The BCI is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to good practice and transparency in the management of natural, human and financial resources.

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