A study of 1,000 garment factories found that some fashion firms ‘engage in unfair practices’, including H&M, Lidl and GAP.
Major international fashion brands including Zara, H&M and GAP are exploiting workers in the Bangladeshi garment industry, with some of them engaging in unfair practices and paying suppliers below the cost of production, according to a study published Wednesday.
The study that surveyed 1,000 Bangladeshi factories making garments for global brands and retailers during the COVID pandemic found that many were being paid the same price despite the global pandemic and rising costs.
More than half of garment factories experienced at least one of the following: order cancellations, refusals to pay, price reductions or late payment for goods, according to the study published by the University of Aberdeen and the activist group Transform Trade.
“These unfair business practices affected the employment practices of suppliers, leading to worker turnover, job losses and lower wages,” the study found.
Of the 1,138 brands/retailers mentioned in the study, 37 percent were reported to have engaged in unfair practices, including Zara’s Inditex, H&M, Lidl, GAP, New Yorker, Primark, Next and others.
The study also found that one in five factories have struggled to pay the legal minimum wage since they reopened after the March and April 2020 lockdown.
The fashion industry needs to change.
Learn about the findings of a survey of 1,000 Bangladeshi factories conducted by Transform Trade and the University of Aberdeen: https://t.co/yEcfhJr6LP pic.twitter.com/fsUR4nNdCG
– Transform Trade (@transformtrade_) January 10, 2023
It also found that some companies demanded price reductions for clothing ordered before the pandemic began in March 2020, while others refused to change the price, despite sky-high costs and rampant inflation.
The report included responses from some companies.
Inditex said that it “guaranteed payment for all orders already placed and in the production process and worked with financial institutions to facilitate the granting of loans to suppliers on favorable terms.”
German supermarket chain Lidl said it took the “allegations very seriously”, adding that it “takes its responsibility towards workers in Bangladesh and other countries where our suppliers produce very seriously and is committed to ensuring that standards are met.” Fundamental social issues throughout the supply chain. ”.
Primark said that due to the pandemic, it had made “the incredibly difficult decision in March 2020 to cancel all orders that had not yet been delivered.”
The study recommended establishing a fashion watchdog that would help curb unfair practices by ensuring that “buyers/retailers cannot place disproportionate and inappropriate risks on their suppliers and that retailers and brands abide by the rules of the fair business practices”.
In August, the Bangladeshi garment industry faced a double whammy from slowing global demand and a domestic energy crisis that threatened to thwart the nation’s pandemic recovery.
In the same month, the world’s leading retailers agreed to a two-year pact with garment workers and factory owners in Bangladesh, extending a pre-existing agreement that holds retailers liable if their factories fail to comply with workplace safety regulations, including retail giants H&M, Inditex, Fast Retailing’s Uniqlo, Hugo Boss and Adidas.
Worker exploitation and poor workplace safety standards have been on display following the 2013 Rana Plaza complex collapse that killed more than 1,100 garment workers, the deadliest incident in the history of the garment industry.
The European Union has warned consumers to stop treating their clothes as disposable items and said it plans to counter polluting use of mass-market fast fashion.
Source: news.google.com