Workers Rights news and archive

Giorgio Armani’s supply chain fiasco highlights complexity

Workers in an Italian factory who were found to be exploited while producing accessories for Giorgio Armani highlight the complexity of fashion supply chains. Even in a heavily regulated continent like Europe, it is possible to evade the systems in place to ensure worker safety and protection. Fashion supply chains are fragmented, involving...

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Spanish trade union CCOO sues Decathlon for violation of the right to freedom of association

The confrontation between the management of the multinational sports company Decathlon in Spain and the Spanish trade union Comisiones Obreras (CCOO) has not eased at all, but rather intensified. On 3 April, the union filed a lawsuit against the sports company for violating the right to freedom of association. Just a few weeks ago, Decathlon was...

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Zara owner Inditex workers protest after record profits

Workers at Inditex's Zara and other big name stores protested outside the company shops across Spain on Friday to demand better benefits after the world's biggest fashion retailer reported record profits and raised shareholder payouts. Blowing whistles and waving union flags, around 100 people demonstrated outside the flagship Bershka store on...

Business

AAFA calls on Bangladesh to stop 'threats' to garment workers

American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) has called for an end to "the threats and crackdown on garment workers in Bangladesh" in an open letter addressed to the president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers & Exporters Association (BGMEA). In recent months, the protesters have been protesting against one of the lowest wages in the world,...

Business

Amazon repays 1.9 million to more than 700 Saudi workers over unlawful fees

Online retailer Amazon said Friday it had paid $1.9 million to more than 700 contracted workers in Saudi Arabia as reimbursements for unlawful recruitment fees, among other alleged violations. In October, Amnesty International accused Amazon of a range of abuses against workers in the oil-rich Gulf kingdom, prompting the US-based multinational...

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NGO concludes workers’ rights were ignored following earthquake in Turkey

The Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC), an international organisation working to protect garment workers, accused factories and brands of abandoning workers after the devastating earthquake in Turkey last February. "As most of them were not paid in full after the earthquake, workers had to return to work out of financial hardship, without safe...

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Over one million dollars recovered for Californian garment workers

The US Department of Labor has said that it has recovered over one million dollars in back wages and damages for 165 garment workers after an investigation found a series of malpractices by Los Angeles garment contractors. The settlement, considered to be the largest for Californian garment workers to date, was linked to the operations of four...

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Thousands laid off over protests against minimum wage in Bangladesh textile industry

Garment workers in Bangladesh have been protesting for higher pay since October, with dire consequences. FashionUnited contacted the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) about the latest status, as thousands of workers have now reportedly been laid off. "It is not quite clear yet but union leaders in Bangladesh assume that around 3,000 to 4,000 workers...

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H&M to increase unit prices for suppliers in Bangladesh

Swedish fast fashion giant H&M is understood to have told its suppliers in Bangladesh that it would be upping its unit prices following the recently announced minimum wage increase for garment workers in the region. The company reportedly said that it would “absorb the increase in wages” in its product prices, becoming one of the first retailers...

Business

Next cleared by ETI over supply chain fallout

British retailer Next has been cleared by the Ethical Trade Initiative (ETI) after one of its suppliers was found to have left workers without due severance following the closure of the company. Turkish manufacturer Neo Trend came under fire in 2021 after it closed its factory and had left workers without their due severance, notice and other...

Business

Adidas faces second hoax by activist collective calling for workers’ rights

In what is now the second hoax carried out against Adidas this year, activist collective Yes Man has once again focused its efforts on the German sportswear giant in a bid to draw attention to the rights of garment workers in its supply chain. All the action took place during the tech conference Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal, where activists...

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What the new minimum wage means for garment workers in Bangladesh

On Tuesday, 8 November 2023, the Bangladeshi government announced the new minimum wage for garment workers: from December, they will receive 12,500 taka (around 114 US dollars) instead of the previous 8,000 taka (68 US dollars). At first glance, the increase seems to be okay, as it is up by 56 percent. However, if one compares the monthly...