Why Should Ikea Join Rugmark Foundation?

Why should IKEA join Rugmark Foundation?

1. Establish immediate presence in contracting countries and begin monitoring

2. The label can provide security against child labor- hence mitigating the scandal in the media

3. Rugmark can provide a good starting point to familiarize with local NGOs and governance agencies. Using these contacts and understanding about the countries IKEA can later develop a its own monitoring program

Why should IKEA not join Rugmark Foundation?

1: Rugmark is recently established and not much is known about it yet

The following reasons come from my knowledge about Pakistan and India. I was born and raised in Pakistan and have visited India as part of an NGO so I have an insider's perspective:

2:"What If" Rugmark gets involved in a bribe scandal- bribe is very common in India and Pakistan. Factories such a looming, weaving, sewing recruit people to bribe NGOs to keep their mouth shut. Initial resistance to be bribed is often met with lower income and increasing societal pressure to have a better standard of living. In the long run many people succumb to such pressures. Several bribe incidents have been exposed in local newspapers. If such scandal surfaces IKEA may end up with a permanently tarnished image.

3: The weaving looms employ kids from small towns sometimes from far off villages. Rugmark can only do surprise raid on the loom factory. But what if the weaving is transferred to houses of these kids (which is very common). These kids will take a job spilt into smaller parts to their houses, work from their houses and send the finished pieces to the big factory (without ever having to come to the loom). Rugmark cannot invade these houses that are spread all over the country. It is a very complicated problem.