by AOIFE MCCARTHY, Digital Marketing & Membership Executive, ICTI Ethical Toy Program

At the ICTI Ethical Toy Program (IETP), we understand the importance of family-friendly workplaces, spaces, and policies. Since 2016, we have worked to develop a variety of programs that factories can adopt to improve the lives of their workforce, especially those with childcare responsibilities. We are now working with key members of the toy industry to expand our reach to address childcare issues in the manufacturing industry globally. 

We have deployed our family-friendly spaces program at numerous manufacturing facilities across China. We initially developed the program to help reunite migrant workers with “left-behind” children — the kids who stay in their rural hometowns, often with their grandparents, during school holidays — while their parents migrate domestically for work. It is estimated that there are 23 million left-behind kids in China, and that is the No. 1 reason that workers give for leaving their jobs.

Source: IETP

Since its launch, the program has grown year over year. We conduct baseline and impact assessments at every space and the results are notable: 94% of workers said they planned to stay at the factory for two or more years due to the childcare provision; 100% of factory managers reported reduced worker turnover; and 89% of workers said they no longer worried about their kids since they were at a family-friendly space.

The concept of family-friendly factories builds upon the successes of the family-friendly spaces program, which creates on-site childcare centers within factories for employees during the summer period. Family-friendly factories also implement policies such as flexible working arrangements, breastfeeding support, flexible leave, and childcare services.

Source: IETP

We work with factories to provide them with the tools they need to become family-friendly and support them to ensure the sustainability of these changes. This allows us to scale the program globally. We have now set an ambition to benefit at least 30,000 kids by the end of 2025. We will achieve this by establishing 100 family-friendly spaces and 50 family-friendly factories, with plans to publicly recognize each one. 

Related: The 2023 Edition of The BIG Toy Book is Here!

Scaling our family-friendly program will deliver benefits for companies sourcing from these factories, as a stable, highly skilled workforce directly supports the stability of the toy supply chain. 

A gender equality study in Vietnam from 2015 showed that 97% of women and 94% of men believe that looking after kids is a woman’s inherent duty, resulting in women bearing the burden of unpaid childcare. Vietnam is also experiencing rapid urbanization of its population as people move from rural areas to cities for work at a rate of 3% per year. This means that traditional sources of childcare, such as grandparents and relatives, will no longer be an option for many.

Source: IETP

Studies from the World Bank Group show that in Mexico, women bear nearly 77% of unpaid housework, spending an average of six hours per day — the highest in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development — compared with men’s average of two hours. The Mexican government also introduced new austerity measures in 2019, ending the Childcare to Support Working Mothers program, a public childcare support program that covered around 90% of childcare costs. Since launching in 2017, the program has reported an 18% increase in women’s likelihood to be employed. The removal of the program has negatively impacted millions of families and working parents.

Our family-friendly factories program will help to fill these gaps in childcare services for workers and provide measurable business benefits for factory management, including reduced worker turnover rates, higher workplace satisfaction, and increased retention of skilled workers. 

Related: Bringing Sustainability to Sourcing Strategies

The toy industry recognizes the importance of looking after the people behind the products, which is why major players in the industry are joining our ambition to support families that work in the global manufacturing industry. We are excited to reveal these companies in the coming weeks and are looking forward to growing this program together.

Companies of any size can contribute to this mission through financial support or in-kind giving. To join our efforts or learn more about our worker well-being programs, feel free to contact us at join@ethicaltoyprogram.org and visit us at ethical.toys.


A version of this article was originally published in the 2023 edition of The BIG Toy Book. Click here to read the full issue! Want to receive The Toy Book in print? Click here for subscription options!

About the author

AOIFE MCCARTHY

AOIFE MCCARTHY

Aoife McCarthy is a Digital Marketing & Membership Executive at the ICTI Ethical Toy Program. She has been with the organization since graduating from University College London (UCL) in 2020. She is responsible for both internal and external communications, stakeholder engagement, and partnerships.

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