Primark

I was in Hyde Park doing my usual run, just thinking about my cheap labour project and feeling frustrated about the lack of support. And then I saw Vivienne Westwood!

A new(ish) leaflet from No Sweat for use on stalls and fashion shows etc to highlight Primark's sweatshop record.

Labour rights violations are common place in Bangladesh. Workers are pushed to the limit and attempts to organise are crushed in order that companies like Primark can make a fortune. Trade unionists in Bangladesh sent us this information about a recent violation involving Primark.

Saturday 4th April 2009 saw the second anniversary of the opening of Primarks flagship store on Oxford St, so No Sweat went down to commemorate the day with a Fashion Show of Shame, highlighting the use of sweatshops in Bangladesh and the exploitation of workers in the UK. Check out the pics...

Shocked? Maybe not, but here's the full story, broken by the BBC:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7824291.stm

War on Want has launched its latest report Fashion Victims II: How UK clothing retailers are keeping workers in poverty, which exposes the appalling conditions faced by workers producing clothes for Primark, Tesco and Asda.

From the Guardian, Dec 3, 2008. Original article in response to our letter, plus response from TUC chief Brendan Barber to TUC General Council and affiliates.

Apparently, the TUC is thinking hard about who it books its facilities out to. We would still like to see the AGM blocked and a firm statement from the TUC urging Primark to clean up its act!

TUC in 'sweatshop labour' row over firm hiring congress hall

The TUC general secretary, Brendan Barber, is refusing to back down over a decision to let out its congress hall this Friday to a British company whose suppliers are alleged to use sweatshop labour in Bangladesh to manufacture cheap T shirts.

A threadbare defence
Primark answered critics over its use of child labour by closing factories in India. But its PR worries aren't over yet
Ewa Jasiewicz

Five months after the Panorama child labour exposé, Primark has been caught with its trousers down – this time over a protest against the clothing company's participation in a major PR event.

British fast fashion giant PRIMARK was due to present on how it weathered the Panorama scandal which exposed the use of child labour in its' supply chains this summer. Unfortunately for them their boasts of having made the outcry go away were premature!

Guardian story, 17 6 08
The fashion chain Primark has axed three longstanding suppliers in southern India for using child labour, after being alerted to the practice by the BBC.

The suppliers - from the Tirapur region of the Tamil Nadu province - were subcontracting embroidery work on dresses to children working from home.

The retailer, which is owned by the Associated British Foods group and operates 170 stores in the UK, accounts for £1 in every £10 spent on clothing.

Two of Britain's major high street retailers have launched inquiries into allegations that factory workers who make their clothes in India are being paid as little as 13p per hour for a 48-hour week, wages so low the workers claim they sometimes have to rely on government food parcels.

The story behind Primark's low prices...

Download this No Sweat resource, copy it, give it out!

Workers endure up to 84-hour weeks to survive

Long hours and low pay breach industry codes, say workers

The UK student group People and Planet have produced a bulletin for campaigners involved in FairTrade campaigning. The bulletin looks at cotton production and targets the Primark chain.
go here:
http://peopleandplanet.org/tradejustice/highcost
and open the document 'High Street - High Cost'

Also on this page: 'White gold, the true cost of cotton', a useful 48 page report by the Economic Justice Foundation