Dutch high street brands Hema, Zeeman, Prenatal and Coolcat have not signed an agreement to improve safety and working conditions for textile workers in Bangladesh, according to the final list of signatories published online.

C&A, V&D, G-Star and WE have signed up to the pledge, which is supported by global firms such as Primark, H&M, Inditex, Benetton and Carrefour.

A spokesman for Zeeman told news agency ANP on Thursday the company did plan to sign at some point but first ‘we have to see if it can all be realised’. Hema told ANP it already had procedures in place to ensure worker safety and wished to study the new agreement ‘in more detail’.

1,100 killed

The aim of the Accord on Fire and Building Safety is to improve the safety of people working in the textile sector following last month’s building collapse in which over 1,100 workers were killed.

The companies which support the accord cover over 1,000 garment factories in Bangladesh.

‘We are talking about improving the working conditions and lives of some of the most exploited workers in the world, earning $38 a month in dangerous conditions,’ said Jyrki Raina, secretary general of the IndustriALL Global Union, which helped initiate the movement.