Most people would agree that some of the working conditions that many adults and children find themselves working in across the world are awful but find it hard to actually do anything about it. As the manager of Genesis F.C. I was challenged when I heard about some of the working conditions of football stitchers. "I have been stitching footballs for as long as I remember," confided a young girl from Jalandhar, aged between 10-12 years. "My hands are constantly in pain. It feels like they are burning. There is nothing I can do I have to help my older sister complete the order."

 

The average daily earning of an adult male in football stitching is around 20 Rupees- less than 30p. The wages paid to children are even less. Research suggests that there may be more than 15,000 children stitching footballs in Pakistan. Children as young as 5 years old can be found stitching footballs. Of all full-time working children in India, 37% are between 5 and 12 years old. "It is hard to come home from school and start making a football, but we are poor, so we have to do it" (school girl, aged 10-13)

 

So when I heard from the Fair Trade Foundation that there was a company called Fair Deal Trading that provided Fair Trade Footballs I was keen to look into it. The footballs are made at factories based in Sialkot, Pakistan. The main characteristics of the company are that stitchers receive a substantially increased wage and that all stitchers and other workers of the supplying company receive medical care. They also receive a credit scheme, to help reduce the exclusive dependency of stitchers on the production of balls. The conditions in which the Fair Trade balls are made are well regulated and doesn’t allow children under the age of 16 to stitch.

 

The cost of the balls are slightly more expensive than normal and with thanks to Charnwood Borough Council and Powrie Appleby, who helped with a grant, we were able to purchase six training balls and three match balls. Cllr. Sandie Hubbard comments "It is an extremely positive step towards Charnwood becoming a Fair Trade Borough by 2006, that Charnwood Borough Council is helping the Community to not only purchase Fair Trade products by means of grants like this one, but also to promote and encourage all residents and retailers in the Borough to think about the important principles behind Fair Trade and to bring it into our everyday lives.  It's about Choice, the right choice." 

 

For more information about Fairtrade footballs contact the Fairtrade Deal Trading by emailing contact@fairdealtrading.co.uk or telephoning 0870-766 5196 or look up their website www.fairdealtrading.com

 

The media coverage that we have received from doing this simple act was incredible, from BBC East Midlands Today to the Loughborough Echo to Radio Leicester to the BBC website and even the Observer Magazine. For the BBC website and the Observer Magazine articles….

 

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,11913,1359597,00.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/actionnetwork/A3288918

Buying the Fair Trade footballs was a great step for the club. It reflects something of how we want to run the club; respecting others both on and off the pitch. The publicity was great but being able to make a difference to the stitchers lives over in Pakistan was really important for us.