ment Industry

Modern-Day Slavery, Starvation Wages and Environmental exploitation:

Coronavirus has exposed the Atrocities of the British Garment Industry.

But How Might It Change?

written by Lily Hardcastle

Covid-19 has profoundly affected many aspects of British industry, which does not exclude the fashion industry. When a lockdown was initially imposed on March 23rd, clothing sales naturally plummeted. Furloughed employees, those made redundant and those quarantined, had neither the money nor the reason to be purchasing clothes, leading to a 34% drop in clothing sales in March and a resultant massive surplus of stock.

These figures raised concerns for those in the industry. Brands such as Laura Ashley and Debenhams have recently gone into administration and there were fears that many others would not survive. Yet, whilst other big brands were failing, fast-fashion giant Boohoo experienced a rise in profits. Having withstood the shock to the industry, Boohoo managed to increase their sales figures from those of 2019, resulting in the big bosses rewarding themselves with bonuses amounting to up to £150 million. Meanwhile, many of their British workers were on wages of just £3 per hour. The discovery of modern-day slavery in Boohoo’s Leicester factories has shocked the nation. Wage theft, hazardous working conditions and stories of Covid-19 tearing through factories has horrified customers. The sheer scale of the illegal industry - involving up to 10,000 workers - was deemed ‘appalling’ by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. What appears to be more shocking is the revelation that both the local British council and the national government have been well aware of these atrocities for years. Journalist Lucy O’Connor demanded some answers in an article written for the Financial Times in 2018. How could she buy a dress from Boohoo for £6, when the minimum wage for over 25s was £7.83 per hour. Her article went on to expose the so-called ‘dark factories’ in Leicester, in which £5 was the top wage. Despite local authorities being aware of this, no one has seemed to challenge or question this discrepancy. The corruption of the British garment industry was revealed to underpin not only Boohoo’s soaring profits but also those of numerous other well-known brands and retailers. Covid-19 exposed more brands, factories and retailers neglecting their workers’ rights. ASOS was accused by British industrial Trade Union GMB of hazardous working conditions at the height of the pandemic. Workers described a ‘cradle of disease’ in their warehouses, in which hundreds of extra members of staff had been recruited in order to deal with soaring order numbers with no social distancing measures in place. Figures surfaced that 4,000 workers were crammed into an ASOS warehouse in Barnsley, in which 98% felt unsafe to work. This narrative was seen again and again amongst other factory workers, including those at warehouses owned by brand Pretty Little Thing, in which social distancing was deemed “impossible”. Brands putting their workers at risk in order to ensure high profits demonstrates the truly devastating human impact of fast fashion. The second lockdown imposed in Leicester on June 29th has been attributed by politicians and publications alike to be linked to the lack of protection for workers in the garment industry - 70% of which is dedicated to producing for Boohoo. One asks how many fatalities have occurred through the fast-fashion industry’s ceaseless pursuit of profit? The problem does not end here. As Labour MP Claudia Webbe comments, “Leicester’s garment industry and the crisis it presents is just a microcosm of the global assault on workers’ rights”. Ultimately, this pandemic has exposed the universal nature of the garment industry’s cruelty.

As sales dropped at the beginning of lockdown in the UK, retailers faced an enormous surplus of stock. Aside from being hugely wasteful, this constituted large losses of money. Retailers including Primark and New Look soon began cancelling orders with overseas factories, not only for future orders but also for those in production. 1,089 factories in Bangladesh alone have had orders cancelled, amounting to $1.5 billion in total. This is thought to have impacted 1.2 million workers, and will undoubtedly knock Bangladesh’s economy, of which the garment-making industry usually totals 13% of the country’s GDP. These workers were already on starvation wages, earning below the necessary amount to pay for necessities, and now have no way to feed their families, let alone afford the cost of medical bills as Covid-19 infiltrates the country. Western firms do not seem phased by these events and their significant repercussions. New Look announced that it would cancel orders that were already in produc-

tion, warning its supply chain that payment would be Why do fast-fashion retailers not seem to be pursuing delayed indefinitely. When challenged regarding this the same goals? decision, it stated that “this is a matter of survival”. And Consumers appear to be increasingly wary of the yet, the ‘survival’ of its workers was not discussed. fast-fashion industry and its atrocities. Since the lockWriting in the Business of Fashion, garment manufac- down, 52% of people intend to make long-term changturer Mostafiz Uddin urges us to “remember, poverty es to their fashion consumption, with the figure rising to is a killer too, and many more people die from pover- 70% among 16-24-year-olds. A third of women report ty than Covid-19”. Covid-19 has brought to light many that they will be buying fewer clothes in the future. It is of the deficiencies of the garment industry, and un- interesting to note that Boohoo’s loss in sales contrasts doubtedly exacerbated these issues. However, there is sharply with booming sales on resale platforms such as hope that this will have brought about some positive Depop, perhaps demonstrating our changing attitude change, and that life after Covid-19 will see changes to towards clothing consumption. this ruthless industry. Campaign group Fashion Revolution, hopes that If these attitudes continue to change, they could have Covid-19 will put an end to fast-fashion, and that “our hugely positive effects on the global garment indusdays indoors can bring about revolutions in caring for try in the post-Covid-19 world. Under pressure from our clothes better, mending and consumers, for example, Primark has making clothing, and adopting already announced that it will create a mindset of longevity when it ““if we do nothing, a fund to compensate supply chain comes to our wardrobes”. This aspiration is echoed by Dame Anna the fashion industry workers. The question remains, will it last? AcWintour, who feels “very strongly will simply return to cording to Fashion Revolution, “if we that when we come out at the oth- do nothing, the fashion industry will er end, people’s values are really business as usual” simply return to business as usual going to have shifted”. when this is all over”. It sees it as the The first positive sign that this is responsibility of the consumer to deoccurring has been Boohoo’s drop mand sustainability and transparency in both popularity and market value. After its factory from brands, and reject the ruthless over-consumption scandal came to light, investors began dropping out, we are bingeing on at this present moment. and a loss in sales led to a £1 billion drop in market val- Covid-19 is undoubtedly going to make brands focus ue over a week. Many customers chose to boycott the on their survival, putting workers’ rights and the susbrand, and retailers including Next, Amazon, Very and tainability of their products on the back-burner. HowZalando removed Boohoo clothing for sale on their ever, Fashion United calls businesses to “integrate suswebsites. This implies a positive change, in which con- tainability throughout business recovery strategies”, sumers value transparency and integrity from brands, and retailer Zalando sees “a clear link between sustainthus purchasing from companies that achieve this with ability and continued commercial success”. Fashion their money. A survey of 6,000 people across the UK, United spoke to the vice president of public engagethe US, Germany, Italy and China demonstrated that ment at Patagonia, Rick Ridgeway, who claims that “the consumers favourably viewed brands which also paid metrics we use to measure the health of our businesses their furloughed employees, donated money to coro- should also include the health of our planet”. navirus-related causes, and used their facilities to help make Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). During this crisis, our worlds have shrunk. People have Notable changes have also been witnessed in the lux- perhaps this global industry will equally shrink to a ury fashion market. Louis Vuitton has repurposed its sustainable size. At the very least, it is hoped that the perfume factories towards the production of hand san- demand for change will force the main culprits to take itizer. Prada has been donating large sums to intensive responsibility for their workers, their carbon footprint, care units in Milan. Burberry is not only funding vaccine and their supply chains - from Leicester to Bangladesh. research but has also adapted its global supply chain to fast track masks to the NHS. decreased their closet consumption accordingly, and