Buyer–Supplier Role in Improving Ergonomics in Garment Supplier Factories: Empirical Evidence from the Garment Industry of Bangladesh

Ergonomics is a key concern of garment suppliers to improve their workers’ well-being and efficiency. However, suppliers’ isolated initiatives are not sufficient to improve ergonomics conditions. Thus, buyers’ cooperation and collaboration with suppliers are necessary to make the ergonomic initiatives successful and sustainable. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of buyer-assisted ergonomics intervention on suppliers’ performance and the role of buyers’ assistance and suppliers’ initiatives for improving ergonomics conditions in garment supplier factories. Following a qualitative research approach and multiple embedded case study method, this study intervened in supplier factories and collected qualitative and quantitative data from one Danish buyer and their four key suppliers on ergonomics and the role of buyers and suppliers in improving ergonomics conditions. Collected data were analysed by employing both quantitative and qualitative data analysis techniques. This study demonstrates that buyer-assisted ergonomics intervention on the shop floor can improve ergonomics conditions in garment supplier factories. This study also shows that improving ergonomics in supplier factories need joint efforts of buyers and suppliers. The findings of this study will enrich the literature on ergonomics, sustainability, and buyer–supplier relationships by demonstrating how garment suppliers in developing countries can improve ergonomics to meet the expectations of lead buyers and their workers. This is a unique research attempt to understand ergonomics from a buyer–supplier relationship perspective and its impact on the social sustainability of garment suppliers.

The Engagement of Complementors and the Role of Platform Boundary Resources in e-Commerce Platform Ecosystems

The success of digital platforms can be attributed to the engagement of autonomous complementors as exemplified by e-commerce Content Management System (CMS) platforms such as WordPress and Shopify. Platform owners provide Platform Boundary Resources (PBRs) to stimulate and control complementor engagement. Despite the increasing scholarly interest in digital platform ecosystems, their exact role in facilitating and channeling complementor engagement remains unclear. Therefore, we conducted an embedded case study on CMS platform ecosystems, comprising a total of 24 interviews with platform owners and complementors. We inductively derive five types of complementor engagement and their respective manifestations and two overarching engagement goals of complementors. Moreover, we determine the different types of PBRs utilized, including their critical effects, and distinguish between uniform and individual PBRs reflecting their respective generalizability and scalability. We discuss the findings by introducing the concepts of complementor resourcing and complementor securing and shed light on the standardization-individualization tension of PBRs faced by platform owners.

Managing religion at work: a necessary distinction between words and deeds. A multiple case study of the postures facing religious expression in French organizations

PurposeReligious expression at work (REW) has a unique place in France. The authors studied the perception of the postures of four organizations in the face of this phenomenon, focusing on the gap between official posture and the posture applied by managers.Design/methodology/approachUsing a qualitative approach, the authors conducted semi-structured interviews (40), observation periods and documentary analysis within four organizations. This multiple embedded case study was undertaken in four different firms in France: an international private firm, a public organization, and two small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with original models of REW management.FindingsA distinction between aligned and non-aligned postures emerged. There was a lack of alignment in only two of the four organizations, and this alignment concerned only two units of analysis: prayer on break and wearing religious symbols. Several extrinsic factors were identified in this lack of alignment between the official posture and the posture actually applied by managers: the form of REW, the religion concerned and whether it had minority status in the country, the degree of clarity of the official posture, the degree of formalization of the official posture, the size and scope of the company, the degree of awareness of managers and their teams, the degree of involvement of leaders in the definition and implementation of the posture, and the purpose of the official posture.Research limitations/implicationsThis research provides a sensitive understanding of religious expression at work and shows that alignment is sought specifically for each form of REW. The distinction between official posture and applied posture is highlighted through the study of perceptions. In addition, this study enables the identification of factors that influence the alignment of official and operational postures.Practical implicationsThese results call for clarity of the official posture and for it to be defended by leaders, provision of meaning to postures by raising awareness among intermediate hierarchical lines, understanding of the applicable legal framework to transpose it to the local level, and analysis of unaligned forms of REW to build a strong, shared posture.Originality/valueThis study, which was carried out within a specific French context, concerns areas that have received little attention or have not been studied at all to date, such as REW in SMEs or in the public sector, and demonstrates for the first time the distinction between official postures and effective postures.

Incongruent Impressions: Teacher, Parent, and Student Perceptions of Two Black Boys’ School Experiences

For many Black boys, poor academic performance and high rates of school discipline are often related to biases in how they are perceived and treated at school. These biases oftentimes misalign with how Black boys view themselves and how family members perceive them at home. Few studies examine how different stakeholders’ perceptions of Black boys manifest and shape the middle school experience. The current study employed an embedded case study design, using data from eight semi-structured interviews to explore incongruence among student, teacher, and parent perceptions of two middle school Black boys’ academic and social experiences. Findings showed greater congruence between the boys’ experiences and their parents’ perceptions of them compared to their teachers’ perceptions of them. Of note were teachers’ inaccurate reports of the boys’ career aspirations and academic interests and abilities. Implications of these patterns and their impact on Black boys’ experiences in school are discussed.

It takes two to tango: combining asset specificity and uncertainty to explain the diversity of plural forms

In this paper, we rely on an extended version of the traditional transaction cost economics (TCE) framework to explain the variety of plural forms in the governance of food supply chains. Relying on the interplay of two transactional attributes – asset specificity and uncertainty – we explore not only the existence of plural forms, but their empirical diversity. This aspect has been largely under-explored and very little has been done empirically so far in this respect, despite its empirical significance. From an organizational point of view, this diversity requires an explanation as they carry different governance properties. We propose that while both are important drivers for the prevalence of plural forms, each of them plays a different role in their composition. Whereas uncertainty determines the type of plural form, asset specificity determines the level of coordination within the plural form and sheds light in the relative weights of each organizational arrangement composing it. An embedded case study of the Korin firm in Brazil, a leading firm in the organic food market, illustrates.

Pathways to Improving Nutrition among Upland Farmers through Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture Interventions: A Case from Northern Laos

While there is an increased awareness of the role of nutrition-sensitive agriculture (NSA) interventions on nutrition, the studies that investigate holistic pathways from interventions to nutrition outcomes are inadequate. We aimed to understand these pathways to improved nutrition from the Enhancing Nutrition of Upland Farming Families (ENUFF) Project implemented in northern Laos. We applied an embedded case study design by recruiting 101 participants representing implementers, school and private sector representatives, and beneficiaries, of which 34 participated in interviews and 68 participated in 11 FGDs. This was supplemented by a desk review of project documents. We analyzed the data using a directed content analysis across five pathways using a published framework on impact pathways from NSA interventions to nutrition outcomes. The project contributed to nutrition mainly through three core pathways-food production, nutrition and WASH-related knowledge, and agricultural income, supported by strengthening local institutions within the project’s scope. While it is evident that the project contributed to empowering women by saving their time and increasing income, further study is needed to investigate the translation of these aspects to nutrition-related practices. We also suggest the need to sustain the capacity of local institutions and their engagement beyond the project cycle. To enhance the effectiveness of NSA interventions on nutrition, there is a need to design and implement intervention package with multiple pathways and tailored strategies based on nutrition outcomes, the envisaged pathways, geographical context, and factors affecting these.

Multigenerational Art Making at a Community School: A Case Study of Transformative Parent Engagement

In this article, Kevin M. Kane, Karen Hunter Quartz, and Lindsey T. Kunisaki describe the transformative parent engagement fostered in a multigenerational afterschool arts program at a community school. Community schools bring together families, teachers, and other neighborhood partners to help students learn, grow, and thrive and often integrate health, education, and social services. This embedded case study shows how community schools can also nurture cultural assets in the form of parents’ community cultural wealth. The learning of these community school parents demonstrates the mutually reinforcing relationships between transformative parent engagement, collaborative leadership, expanded learning opportunities, and integrated student supports. This study highlights the transformative impact of culturally sustaining arts on individuals, families, and the school as a whole, offering implications for researchers and practitioners in community-based arts education and community school development.

The Empowerment of Tourism Community Through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Program

Community empowerment has an important role in building sustainable tourism. One of the plans used for community empowerment in tourism areas is the implementation of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) which involves the implementation and participation of the community in program activities. This study aims to define and describe community empowerment in tourism areas through the implementation of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The research method used is descriptive qualitative with a single embedded case study. The results of this study are: (1) CSR profile of Bank Jatim (East Java Bank), (2) tourism community empowerment based on the CSR program, (3) the implementation of CSR program in tourism area of Pancer Door Beach, and (4) the results of the tourism community empowerment in Pancer Door Beach from CSR program.

An exploratory case study on child sex tourism in a Pacific country: Samoa

<p>In 2006, The Committee of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, expressed concern about rising tourism in Samoa, and the possibility of associated sexual exploitation of local children. The Committee had recommended that the Government of Samoa devote further research to the sexual exploitation of children, including identifying its scope, and root causes. This thesis became a response to The Committee’s recommendation to Samoa. I carried this study out in Apia, Samoa (2009). It presented three research objectives as follows, 1) To report the scope of child sex tourism in Samoa, 2) To identify, and report on the root causes that contributed to child sex tourism in Samoa, and 3) To present a set of recommendations as a baseline foundation for policy, advocacy, and research. Methodology was a qualitative, single embedded case study. Data sources were mixed-method and multi-perspective, aimed at triangulation to enhance trustworthy results. Data analysis was inductive. Anecdotal evidence revealed child sex tourism is a serious problem in Samoa. Victims were girls and boys (including straight and transgendered ones), perpetrators were all male; preferential and opportunistic. The data revealed 10 root causes facilitating CST in Samoa, as follows: 1) Poverty, 2) Hospitality, 3) Philanthropic exploitation, 4) Marginalisation of boys, 5) Family under pressure, and family dysfunction, 6) Unsafe schools, 7) Ifoga, or the culture of shame, 8) Sex tourism, 9) Tourism was excused of any action, and 10) Lack of awareness about child sex tourism. Additionally, four substantial root causes were identified, as follows: 1) Complacency, 2) Attitudes toward data collection, 3) Child sex tourism had to be ‘proven’ by statistics, and 4) Perpetrators beaten and deported leading to under reporting. This was a first study in Samoa. The baseline results this study presents, are important for policy development, advocacy, and for the academic research community, offer a platform to build on, both quantitative and qualitative.</p>

An exploratory case study on child sex tourism in a Pacific country: Samoa

<p>In 2006, The Committee of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, expressed concern about rising tourism in Samoa, and the possibility of associated sexual exploitation of local children. The Committee had recommended that the Government of Samoa devote further research to the sexual exploitation of children, including identifying its scope, and root causes. This thesis became a response to The Committee’s recommendation to Samoa. I carried this study out in Apia, Samoa (2009). It presented three research objectives as follows, 1) To report the scope of child sex tourism in Samoa, 2) To identify, and report on the root causes that contributed to child sex tourism in Samoa, and 3) To present a set of recommendations as a baseline foundation for policy, advocacy, and research. Methodology was a qualitative, single embedded case study. Data sources were mixed-method and multi-perspective, aimed at triangulation to enhance trustworthy results. Data analysis was inductive. Anecdotal evidence revealed child sex tourism is a serious problem in Samoa. Victims were girls and boys (including straight and transgendered ones), perpetrators were all male; preferential and opportunistic. The data revealed 10 root causes facilitating CST in Samoa, as follows: 1) Poverty, 2) Hospitality, 3) Philanthropic exploitation, 4) Marginalisation of boys, 5) Family under pressure, and family dysfunction, 6) Unsafe schools, 7) Ifoga, or the culture of shame, 8) Sex tourism, 9) Tourism was excused of any action, and 10) Lack of awareness about child sex tourism. Additionally, four substantial root causes were identified, as follows: 1) Complacency, 2) Attitudes toward data collection, 3) Child sex tourism had to be ‘proven’ by statistics, and 4) Perpetrators beaten and deported leading to under reporting. This was a first study in Samoa. The baseline results this study presents, are important for policy development, advocacy, and for the academic research community, offer a platform to build on, both quantitative and qualitative.</p>