Abstract
The 2013 Rana Plaza building disaster highlighted the failure of labour regulation in global garment value chains. Eight years on, in the midst of Covid-19, we ask: what changes have occurred in labour regulation and with what consequences for workers? Using the concept of a labour governance system (LGS), we show that despite improvements in building and worker safety regulation, the garment LGS remains weak, with wages, working hours and treatment of workers showing little improvement. The pandemic appears to have exacerbated these deficiencies but its demise offers an opportunity to strengthen the LGS along lines that we propose.