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06 October 2021 Relaunch of the Fashion Checker: None of the fashion companies surveyed guarantees that workers in their supply chain will receive the same wages even during the pandemic

As new data from the Fashion Checker shows, transparency remains the key to holding fashion companies accountable when workers, trade unions and activists ask them not to leave their workers in distress and despair during the pandemic. None of the fashion companies surveyed guarantees that workers in their supply chain will receive the same wage as before during the pandemic - let alone a living wage. In addition, the data from the Fashion Checker show users the gap between a living wage and the actual wages paid in the factories.

Many fashion companies make promises and claim to respect workers' rights and pay living wages, but without transparency, it's just claims. Workers, trade unions and civil society organisations cannot hold fashion companies accountable for their promises.

Fashion companies need to stop hiding their supply chains. Their clothing is made by real people, who are often most affected by the pandemic. If workers' rights are violated, they need to know where to get redress. And consumers have the right to know where and how clothes are made," said Paul Roeland, Transparency Coordinator of the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC).

60% of fashion companies do not comply with a commitment to transparency

The updated Fashion checker dataRaised in collaboration with Fashion Revolution, they specifically focus on transparency and reveal a disturbing truth: A disappointingly large number of fashion brands are still doing nothing or very little for supply chain transparency. 159 companies (60%) receive a 1 or 2 star rating, which means that they do not comply with the commitment to transparency. Only 46 out of 264 brands (17%) receive five stars, which means they disclose additional information about their supply chain - for example, whether there is a union in the workplace.

While fashion companies were also given the opportunity to inform the CCC of changes affecting their Living Wage assessments, they were not specifically asked about their wage obligations and the payment of living wages during the COVID-19 pandemic, as they reportedly did not even pay the statutory minimum wage or pre-pandemic wages. Currently, only five fashion companies state that they pay living wages to at least some of the workers in their supply chains. The lack of progress in paying living wages is particularly evident during the pandemic, when workers also had to pay the price of the pandemic, even though fashion companies have been underpaying workers for decades. Workers in the apparel industry have so far been unable to save anything and have basically lived from hand to mouth, leading to a life-threatening emergency during the pandemic.

Fashion brands owe textile workers over 10 billion euros

For example, during the nationwide lockdown in April and May 2021, Cambodian workers were deprived of an estimated $109 million in wages. The CCC estimates that in the year of the pandemic, from March 2020 to March 2021, at least 10 billion euros in debt to workers have accumulated worldwide.

I have to pay my debts, water and electricity bills monthly, but my salary is not enough. I do not want higher production targets, while the number of workers to achieve them is decreasing. We don't have enough income to pay our basic cost of living," said a Cambodian worker who produces for Primark.

Global #PayYourWorkers coalition calls for binding agreement

The #PayYourWorkers campaign calls on all clothing companies and retailers to sign a binding agreement covering, on the one hand, these debts to workers and, on the other hand, the obligation to respect basic labour rights under the ILO conventions. The aim of the CCC is first of all to ensure payment by the fashion companies of outstanding wages and severance payments, in addition, a living wage is considered an important goal in the entire supply chain of the apparel industry.