Despite fast fashion brands making sustainable pledges to be better for the environment, many are still not upholding their pledges to be better to the people who make their clothes. Human rights organizations are still calling out these companies for their connections to forced labor, unpaid wages and labor violations. And, how can a brand call itself sustainable if it is not ethical?
Sustainable is a term that is often equated with the environment. But, social impacts should also be likened to the term. Sustainable means ‘able to be upheld’. And, products that are made unethically and cause harm to the people who are making them should never be considered a sustainable practice.
As consumers, it’s important for us to be aware of companies practices to avoid falling into the greenwashing trap of thinking that a company is doing good when it reality it is not. A big part of the sustainable movement is the push from consumers. By educating ourselves on how our products are made we can urge brands to make changes to produce them ethically and sustainably. And, if they do not, we can support the brands whose ethics match our own.
Indian Garment Workers Denied Minimum Wage
Despite the fact that brands around the world are raising their prices to manage the rising costs from supply chains with profits, garment workers are being denied these benefits and in many instances, even minimum wage. The Worker Rights Consortium (WRC) estimates that garment workers in India are owed $55 million from wages that have been left unpaid since the beginning of the pandemic when the wage increase went into effect.
– A woman worker in Karnataka, India
In India, The American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) are urging factory owners in the state of Karnataka to honor the minimum wage which has increased. An estimated 400,000 garment workers who makes clothes for Nike, Zara, H&M, Columbia and Gap are owed millions in unpaid wages since April 2020.
Workers Rights Are Denied In Bangladesh
One effect of the pandemic is that across Western countries, we are shopping more and it is the most vulnerable across the supply chain who have borne the negative impacts from factories straining to meet consumers’ demands. A study published by researchers at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, and trade justice charity Traidcraft Exchange UK show how recent actions taken by Western brands have fueled the human rights violations happening within the walls of these factories.
Four million people across Bangladesh are employed by the ready-to-wear industry and a majority of these workers were women who are subject to violence, abuse and wage theft. Studies have shown that these atrocious acts have increased during the pandemic through practices such as factory owners only allowing garment workers to return if they sign new contracts that prohibit them from taking legal action to protect their rights. The study, which also included face-to-face interviews, shares suggestions for policy changes across the industry and government to ensure that basic human and workers’ rights were upheld for garment workers.
Thailand’s Workers Are Still Fighting To Be Paid
Lock downs policies closed factories and left garment workers throughout the world without an income and back wages owed to them.
Since the start of the pandemic last year, this is probably the first case we have seen of a company suddenly closing down without severance pay and not providing payment to cover their notice period. ~ Phongthep Petchsom, head of the Labour Protection and Welfare Office in Samut Prakan.
In Thailand, brands like Victoria’s Secret came under fire for violating the law and were ordered by the Thai government to pay $7 million in compensation to 1,388 garment workers within a 30-day time frame. In June and again in October of 2021, workers were still unpaid and protested against the fashion giant while urging their government to take stronger actions to protect garment workers.
What We Can Do As Consumers
Sign your name to a petition from the Labor Behind The Label asking major brands to pay garment workers across their supply chain to ensure that they are receiving full wages.
Send a message to brands asking them to take actions to ensure that they’re workers are safe across their factories and supply chain.
Join the #PayYourWorkers campaign by petitioning brands and sharing the hashtag on social media.
Reader more about workers’ rights:
Made In California Just Got A Whole Lot More Ethical
Nisolo Launches The World’s 1st Sustainability Facts Label
The Humanity Behind Our Clothes: Why Ethical Fashion Matters