Uzma – machine operator at MYM knitwear
At Schijvens Corporate Fashion we do everything we can to make the world a bit more beautiful. One of our latest projects, Rasai, helps women in our production countries discover and utilize their talents by helping them to find a job. Because we strongly believe that when women actively participate in the labor market, it has a positive effect on their entire environment.
Pakistan: the ideal country to start project Rasai
Pakistan is one of the largest players in the textile industry and we also work with many suppliers there. Until now, work in this sector has mainly been for men, but research around our factories showed that many women also want to work. Because we expect our production to grow in the coming years, we have decided to fill new job openings mainly by women. This is in line with our commitment to greater gender equality throughout the production chain.
Great untapped potential among women in Pakistan
Although Pakistan ranks high as a textile producer, it is one of the countries that is at the bottom of the list when it comes to gender equality. Women often do not work there, not because they do not want to, but because it is not in the culture. That is why we started a research in 2022, together with the RVO, Zeeman and three Pakistani factories (MYM, Lucky and Denim Crafts), led by Rabia Suljuk. Rabia, the wife of the Pakistani ambassador and a health consultant, spent a year going into the neighborhoods around factories to ask women: “Would you like to work? And how can we help you with that?” The people around them – husbands, children and mothers-in-law – were also questioned, because their opinions often determine the choices of these women.
Momina – machine operator at Lucky Textiles
Three new workshops, especially for women
The results were extremely positive: many women in Pakistan want to work! They want to put their time and talents to good use and at the same time make their family financially stronger. That is why we have set up special training workshops in 2023, together with three factories, where women have the opportunity to gain work experience. The workshops are safe places where women not only learn but can also use facilities such as transport to work and childcare. The workshops are guided as well by female supervisors.
The first 90 women are working
The first 90 women started their training in June 2024. In two years they will learn everything to become accomplished seamstresses. But we do more! Together with the Kaarvan Crafts Foundation we offer a training program in which the women learn life skills, such as reading, writing, financial skills and self-confidence. There is now even a waiting list, consisting of women who want to participate and factories that would also like to offer a place for this type of training.
One big family
It’s not just about work for us. What we find important is that these women feel supported – by us and by each other. That is why all women receive a bracelet at the start of their training with the text ‘We are family’. This way they know that they are part of a larger group of women who dare to take the step to realize their ambitions and that they are part of our family all over the world.
Women: the workers of the future in the textile industry
With project Rasai we hope to bring a lasting change in the labor participation of women in our production countries. Thanks to their fine motor skills, women are invaluable in the production process of small garments and refined sewing techniques. In addition, they are also increasingly valued by employers because of their great sense of responsibility. Our goal? That more and more women are becoming an important part of our production chain.
Inspiration for project Rasai: Reesi Schijvens
Project Rasai is named after Reesi Schijvens, the mother of our DGA Shirley Schijvens. Like many women in Pakistan, Reesi did not participate in the labor process because it was not common for married women to work in the Netherlands at that time. With project Rasai, Shirley pays tribute to her mother and to the untapped talents that Reesi would have loved to use. Rasai means ‘to provide access to’, and with this project we want to give women the opportunity to develop their hidden potential.
Reesi Schijvens died on August 5, 2010 at the age of 63.