WALMART’S WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT

WOMEN IN FACTORIES TRAINING PROGRAM

Around the world, Walmart leverages its value chain to help our customers save money and live better while addressing the big issues that matter to us all — sustainability, hunger relief, healthier foods and empowering women. In 2011, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation launched our global Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) initiative. This five-year initiative aims to help improve the lives of women around the world.

Why Women’s Empowerment? In 2011, Walmart launched is to train 60,000 women in 150 NGOs are SWASTI in India; CARE the Women’s Economic factories in India, Bangladesh, El in Bangladesh; World Vision in El Empowerment (WEE) Initiative Salvador, Honduras and China by Salvador and Honduras; and BSR to leverage Walmart’s size and the end of 2016. in China. scale to help increase women’s economic mobility. Walmart and We believe the program can Through $10.7 million in grants the Walmart Foundation both contribute to increasing the from the Walmart Foundation, work on projects as part of this productivity and self-esteem the Women in Factories program initiative. The focus of WEE is to of factory workers, especially trained 48,729 women in help improve the lives of women women, and positively impact Foundational Training for life around the world by providing factory operations. Factory and work skills and 2,546 women training, market access and officials anecdotally report seeing completed Advanced Training by economic opportunities. improved performance of workers, the end of 2014. The training has and reduced absenteeism and been implemented in 82 factories. Under the WEE initiative, we have attrition. The training curriculum is committed to training nearly one open-source and retailers, brands, million women on farms and in suppliers and other interested the workforce. The Women in organizations are welcome to Factories Program, funded by the use it and other resources being Walmart Foundation, is a key WEE made available by the NGOs workforce initiative and our goal implementing the program. The

1 GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The goal of the Women in home and reduce vulnerability Factories Program is to provide to exploitation. female factory workers with the • A work environment more core competencies necessary to receptive to promotion and be successful in the workplace, at inclusion of female workers. home and in their communities. The program is important because At the same time the program many women working on the seeks to empower factory line in factories lack the exposure management and suppliers to: and training that will help them • Identify and develop talent continue on a journey of personal within the factory without Avani Bhadra Welspun Factory, India and professional development. gender bias. “Thanks to the training program, The program focuses on • Retain a strong workforce and I now have dreams I never had delivering: reap the benefits of investment before – to pursue my education • Job readiness skills so workers in talent development. and become a better trainer. I have been given the role of can exercise greater control • Enhance factory efficiency. an elder in my family and am over their work and personal • Equip factory leadership to consulted for many important lives. implement the program on a decisions, and I am thrilled to report that my siblings are now • Core communication and continual basis as part of their attending school. In my village, an conflict resolution skills to be ongoing operations. unmarried woman is typically not better advocates at work and at allowed to go outside the home to work, but because of my success at Welspun, girls are now able to work in the factory.“ TRAINING

CARE developed the open-source Topics include: curriculum and it has been adapted • Managing work and career for each country by the local • Communication skills implementing partner. • Gender awareness Foundational Training • Health, including hygiene, water/sanitation, reproductive When the program begins all men health and women who work on the • Occupational health and safety production line participate in 15 • Application of learning at work hours of Foundational Training. and home

2 Advanced Training • Technical training (facilitated by • Problem solving, decision The next step is to provide select the factory) making, and goal setting women with a 100-hour Advanced • Functional literacy/numeracy • Gender, social status, and Training course. Topics include: • Personal finance relationships • Health and nutrition • Legal empowerment • Basic literacy (as needed) • Communication and • Self-management and negotiation leadership

EVALUATION

To understand the return on evaluation is being conducted supervisory or managerial roles, investment and the effectiveness under the leadership of Dr. Drusilla workers feel more empowered to of the program, the Walmart Brown. make suggestions and the women Foundation provided a grant for are demonstrating leadership to $1 million to Tufts University to Preliminary anecdotal information help women in their communities evaluate the Women in Factories from the implementing NGOs receive medical care and program in India, Bangladesh, indicate some women workers education when cultural norms El Salvador and Honduras. The are having opportunities for may ordinarily prevent this.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED

To learn more about the WiF program, or to access the open-source WiF curriculum, visit corporate.walmart. com/global-responsibility/womens-economic-empowerment/women-in-factories-training-program.

For more information contact the Walmart Foundation or NGOs involved in the program.

Country Organization Contact Email Phone China Business for Social Shirley Xue [email protected] +86-21-61036746 Responsibility Bangladesh CARE Melanie Minzes [email protected] +1-202-595-2800 India Swasti Joseph Julian [email protected] +91-8547874262 +91-9388402234 Honduras World Vision Ernesto Rodriguez [email protected] 503-2261-9800 El Salvador Ext. 1010 All Walmart Foundation [email protected]

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