Beyond the brands: COVID-19, supply chain governance, and the state–labor nexus

Abstract

This article analyses the role played by brands, producer-country governments, and unions in mitigating the impact of disruptions caused to garment supply chains by COVID-19 in Cambodia, Indonesia, and Myanmar. Its findings challenge brand-centric accounts, highlighting the need for more serious consideration of the dynamic, relational nature of labor governance—and, in particular, of the role of the state–labor nexus in determining producer-country unions' ability to exercise strategic agency within global supply chains.