One killed in Bangladesh as garment workers clash with police over pay – police
Dhaka, BangladeshReuters One woman was killed as police in Bangladesh used teargas and rubber bullets to disperse stone-throwing protesters as a demonstration by garment workers for more pay turned violent on Wednesday. The latest death was the third since protests erupted in the past week. On Tuesday, the government said that the minimum wage would […]
10 years after Rana Plaza, Baptist World Aid report finds “huge gap” between fashion industry commitments and reality
Sydney, Australia Ten years ago, 1,134 garment workers were killed and 2,500 injured when a building in Bangladesh collapsed. Most had been sewing clothes for some of the largest fashion brands known around the world. Two managers working then for Baptist World Aid Australia learned of the Rana Plaza tragedy and said they were challenged […]
Fashion companies investing more than ever in ethical sourcing, but their efforts still aren’t reaching garment workers, says Baptist World Aid Australia report
Last updated 5pm (AEDT) Sydney, Australia Fashion companies are making “slow progress” prioritising the elimination of modern slavery and improving outcomes for climate change, Baptist World Aid Australia’s 2021 Ethical Fashion Report and Guide has found. Almost 100 companies with a turnover of $A50 million (as well as some smaller companies), representing 420 fashion brands, were […]
Bangladesh factories open as economic worries trump virus
Dhaka, BangladeshAP Bangladesh is suffering through its deadliest surge of the pandemic, but you wouldn’t know it looking at its factories, markets and malls. The South Asian nation home to 165 million people has done away with most virus restrictions, allowing businesses to reopen to enthusiastic crowds following weeks of strict measures put in place […]
Brands urged to extend workers’ safety deal, eight years after Rana Plaza disaster
Dhaka, BangladeshThomson Reuters Foundation Labour activists on Thursday urged brands to extend a factory safety deal in Bangladesh ahead of the eighth anniversary of the Rana Plaza disaster, in which some 1,100 workers died. The collapse of the eight-storey building near Dhaka – the industry’s deadliest accident – on 24th April, 2013, led some 200 […]
Essay: When your clothes come from tragedy, and how remembering Rana Plaza can change that
In an article marking the eighth anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh, BONNIE GRAHAM, ethical fashion coordinator at Baptist World Aid Australia, calls for your help in ending forced labour in the cotton industry…
Fashion brands urged to fix “broken industry” with pledge on workers’ pay
Dhaka, BangladeshThomson Reuters Foundation Fashion brands should fix their “broken industry” by ensuring millions of pandemic-hit workers receive their full wages and by guaranteeing severance pay if jobs are cut, a coalition of more than 200 rights groups said on Monday. The #PayYourWorkers campaign said brands and retailers that made a profit in 2020 – like […]
Ethical fashion: As the coronavirus pandemic bites, protecting workers in supply chains more important than ever, says Baptist World Aid Australia
DAVID ADAMS reports on the findings – and the making – of a special edition of Baptist World Aid Australia’s annual guide to how well clothing companies which sell in Australia are ensuring ethical practices in their supply chains…
Fashion brands accused of exploiting workers at risk of layoffs
Dhaka, BangladeshThomson Reuters Foundation Millions of garment workers could lose their jobs as global brands are demanding price cuts and delaying payments to suppliers who are desperate for orders to survive the new coronavirus pandemic, US researchers said on Friday. Suppliers have been asked to make their prices an average of 12 per cent cheaper […]
Wow!: Polyester from pollution? Fashion’s next generation goes green
THIN LEI WIN, writing for Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports on how European start-ups are working to transform the fashion industry…