Last week, TIME published an article detailing sexual and physical abuse in a Lesotho factory that makes clothing for Kate Hudson’s popular athleticwear brand Fabletics.
Workers at the factory described sexual harassment from management, sewage on the factory yard floor where they eat lunch, and physical punishment for not meeting production expectations. Most said that their wages were about $150 per month.
Unfortunately, their stories are common.
Most of the clothes that we wear are produced in countries like Bangladesh, China and India. In many of these countries, the minimum wage is very low, and at many textile factories, workers don’t make a living wage.
While the minimum wage is a legally-mandated pay rate, a living wage is a holistic measure. It’s the minimum income needed for someone to meet their basic needs, such as food, housing and clothing. Living wages differ based on where one lives, just as minimum wages differ based on the laws of different countries.
According to the Global Living Wage Coalition, the living wage for someone living in Dhaka City, the capital of Bangladesh, is $214 per month. In the areas around Dhaka City, a living wage is $177 monthly. For comparison, the minimum wage in Bangladesh was raised in 2018 to about $100 per month– much less than what one needs to provide for their basic needs.
One garment worker in Bangladesh reported working 12-hour days to earn $95 per month. This isn’t uncommon for garment workers, and since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, conditions have worsened. At least one million Bangladeshi garment workers were furloughed or fired by April 202, and many who have gone back to work since then have faced pay cuts. Many large fashion brands have cancelled orders, further harming garment workers.
Beyond being paid less than a living wage, many garment factory workers may work as many as 14 to 16 hours per day, with the longest days during peak season. Workers might not be paid for overtime hours, and might work until 2 or 3 am.
Beyond long work days, forced labor can be common in garment and textile factories. Workers may be employed against their will or may be forced to work under debt bondage.
One example of forced labor occurs in China. Uighurs held in detention camps in China serve as a source of forced labor in dozens of factories with inhumane conditions. The Xinjiang province produces 84 percent of China’s cotton and contributes significantly to the nation’s yarn and textile production. With 33 percent of U.S. apparel being imported from China, it is highly likely that the supply chains of many of our major brands involve Uighur forced labor. In fact, companies like Walmart, Kmart, Uniqlo, and Muji have already been linked to Xinjiang factories.
In Uzbekistan, the world’s fifth-largest cotton exporter, the government drafts about a million people to harvest cotton each fall. Public sector employees must help with the harvest, or they risk being fired or arrested. Workers are paid little to nothing for their labor.
A 16-hour work day is double the average American work day. While working as much as twice as long as the average American, garment factory workers cutting or sewing a cotton t-shirt work in inhumane conditions, sometimes as slaves.
What will happen to the garment workers in Lesotho? After the abuse allegations came to light, Fabletics released a statement saying that it is suspending all operations at the factory in question and conducting an investigation.
The garment workers will likely be adversely affected if their factory loses its contract with Fabletics. In interviews, many said that they dislike working at the factory, but had no better options for work.
Human rights must be protected in garment supply chains. Next week, we’ll look at the environmental impacts of a shirt once you buy it.
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