Workers in Bangladesh are regularly working 80 hours
a week for just 5p an hour, in potential death trap factories, to produce cheap
clothes for British consumers of Primark, Tesco and Asda’s ‘George’ range. The
charity War on Want today issued these findings in a new report, Fashion
Victims, based on research among employees at six Bangladeshi factories in the
capital Dhaka which employ over 5,000 workers, mainly women, making clothes for
the three bargain retailers. Meera Syal, star of the television series The
Kumars at No 42, is supporting moves for regulation to bring these companies to
account.
Primark, Tesco and Asda have all made public commitments to the payment
of a living wage to suppliers – commonly calculated to be a minimum £22 a month
in Bangladesh. Yet starting wages in the factories researched for War on Want’s
report were as little as £8 a month, barely a third of the living wage. Even
better paid sewing machine operators receive only £16 a month, which equates to
5p an hour for the 80 hours they regularly have to work each week. The minimum
wage for garment workers in Bangladesh halved in real terms during the 1990s,
and many complain their pay is too low to cover food, housing and health costs.
Primark, Tesco and Asda have also pledged that their suppliers must not
be required to work more than 48 hours a week on a regular basis, and should
have at least one day off in seven on average. But workers interviewed for War
on Want’s report can toil up to 96 hours a week – double the supposed maximum –
and often lose their day off. Factory owners have forced staff to work up to 140
hours a month overtime, often unpaid, or face dismissal.
In February and March 2006, garment factory collapses and fires in
Bangladesh left almost 100 workers dead and many others injured. Being locked in
unsafe buildings has been a common complaint among Bangladeshi factory workers.
Interviewees for War on Want’s report also stated that emergency exits are often
kept locked in their workplaces.
Primark, Tesco and Asda have given their commitment to fair treatment for
suppliers’ workers. But employees interviewed for War on Want’s report said
their managers had been given prior notice of these companies’ social audits,
and workers themselves had been bullied by their bosses to lie about their pay,
hours and safety.
Louise Richards, Chief Executive of War on Want, said:
“Bargain retailers such as Primark, Asda and Tesco are only able to sell at rock
bottom prices in the UK because women workers in Bangladesh are being exploited.
The companies are not even living up to their own commitments towards their
overseas suppliers. The Labour government must bring in effective regulation to
end such shameful practices.”
End
CONTACTS:
Paul Collins, War on Want media officer (+44) (0)20 7549
0584 office (+44) (0)7983 550728 (mobile).
Simon McRae, War on Want senior
campaigns officer (+44) (0)20 7549 0589 (office) (+44) (0)7779 146043 (mobile)
NOTES:
[1] The report, Fashion Victims: The true cost of cheap
clothes at Primark, Asda and Tesco comes on the day of the annual general
meeting of Primark’s parent company, Associated British Foods, in London.
[2] England cricket captain Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff and wife Rachael have
been chosen by Asda as the new celebrities to promote their George clothing
range, alongside England football star Wayne Rooney’s fiancée Coleen McLoughlin.
[3] War on Want is promoting its own ethically produced clothing as gifts
for the festive season. The charity’s long-sleeved and short-sleeved T-shirts
bear the slogan “poverty is political”. These are available online at
www.waronwant.org/All+Clothing+9607.twl
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Call on the government to
regulate companies:
Email Alistair Darling urging for legislation
so that companies and their suppliers cannot abuse workers where they
operate in the world, and if they do then they can seek
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