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Rethabile's Story - Full Version

In the garment factories of Maseru, Lesotho, the workers make clothes to be sold in the United States. What is day-to-day life like in the factories? Let ex-factory worker Rethabile take you to the places she used to work, meet her friends, and describe her role in the Decent Work Regulation project.

This is Rethabile’s Story.

Led from Durham University in the north of England, Decent Work Regulation brings together stakeholders and researchers from across the world - from more than 90 institutions in 25 countries. The aim is to achieve decent work - and Sustainable Development Goal 8 - by making labour rights more effective.

We believe that global dialogue is essential to achieving the SDGs, by sharing ideas and experience between the global North and South.

In Lesotho, Decent Work Regulation is supporting initiatives by local people to improve working life in one of the world’s least economically-developed countries. We are providing a platform for national-level dialogue, supporting capacity-building for trade unions to assert labour rights, generating new ideas on labour law reform, and supporting workers like Rethabile in taking action for decent jobs and the SDGs.

  • Darren Hutchinson
    Director
  • Darren Hutchinson
    Writer
  • Darren Hutchinson
    Producer
  • Rethabile Ratsiu
    Key Cast
  • Ian Denno
    Editor
  • Deirdre McCann
    Executive Producer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    25 minutes 20 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    February 25, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    14,080 GBP
  • Country of Filming:
    Lesotho
  • Language:
    English, Other
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital HD 1920x1080
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • 9th Workers Unite Film Festival
    New York City
    United States
    September 25, 2020
    Official Selection
  • 10th Canadian Labour International Film Festival
    Toronto
    Canada
    November 23, 2019
    Official Selection
  • 6th Regulating for Decent Work (RDW) Conference
    Geneva
    Switzerland
    July 8, 2019
  • 72th Annual Meeting of the Labor and Employment Relations Association (LERA)
    Online
    United States
    June 13, 2020
Director Biography - Darren Hutchinson

Darren Hutchinson has been producing and directing film projects for twenty years and owns the Dreamscope TV brand. With over 1000 hours of broadcast TV credits to his name he is a seasoned film maker and 360 motion specialist, and regularly travels the world filming for organisations big and small. He is a family man who has an interest in nature, travel and creating positive projects that aim to help our vulnerable people and wildlife.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Creating this ambitious film was a huge privilege and I was honoured when the University of Durham trusted me with the project. It was always my intention to understand the real problems surrounding the textile industry in Lesotho and South Africa, rather than arrive with a pre-conceived idea of how the documentary would look. I wanted real stories to guide the narrative so that the viewer can experience the true issues facing people on a daily basis and I believe this film has achieved that. It is my hope that it will help change attitudes towards budget clothing and the cheap labour used to produce it.