Self-Regulation and Labour Standards: An Exemplary Study Investigating the Emergence and Strengthening of Self-Regulation Regimes in the Apparel Industry

The question of how to deal with powerful transnational corporations has entered the national and international political agenda. The last years have seen a strong academic interest in business ethics and corporate social responsibility (CSR). This study offers some insights into the question under which circumstances collective global self-regulation regimes emerge and gain strength. It investigates the rationales and incentives driving corporate decision-making resulting in collective self-regulation regimes in the apparel industry. The work is based on a theoretical discussion of rational choice approaches and expert interviews. The research suggests that public pressure can convincingly explain the emergence of CSR policies in general and self-regulation regimes in particular. Moreover, the emergence and proliferation of collective self-regulation regimes has been influenced by the role of governmental regulation in the early 1990s and has been stagnating in the last years. This development can be convincingly explained by the changed dynamic of public pressure and by the lower perceived threat of governmental regulation.