The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
The factory forced women to stay overnight and work additional hours without notice, the BBC reported, citing anonymous workers who described a “culture of fear” at the plant.
The investigation, which also includes accounts from workers at factories that make clothes for British retailers Marks & Spencer, Tesco and Sainsbury’s, uncovered cases of forced overtime, verbal abuse, and coercion — which charity Action Aid attested were common occurrences in the plants in question.
Lax labour laws, low wages and corruption among factory inspectors mean that brands and their suppliers are seldom held to account for such working conditions. One owner of a clothing supplier described some of the mandatory auditing processes carried out in factories as a “sham.”
When reached for comment, Ralph Lauren said it was “deeply troubled by these allegations,” adding that it is carrying out an audit on the factory and “will take appropriate actions to ensure workers are treated and compensated fairly.” The company also said it regularly conducts unannounced third-party audits on its factory suppliers to ensure operating standards are met and is working with suppliers to build HR systems in a bid to advance wage management and compensation.
Europe’s Parliament has signed off rules that will make brands more accountable for what happens in their supply chains, ban products made with forced labour and set new environmental standards for the design and disposal of products.
Fashion’s biggest sustainable cotton certifier said it found no evidence of non-compliance at farms covered by its standard, but acknowledged weaknesses in its monitoring approach.
As they move to protect their intellectual property, big brands are coming into conflict with a growing class of up-and-coming designers working with refashioned designer gear.
The industry needs to ditch its reliance on fossil-fuel-based materials like polyester in order to meet climate targets, according to a new report from Textile Exchange.