Modern Slavery in the Fashion Industry

‘If I had enough today, my daughter would not have to work… inside my mind I feel pain, that today this daughter should have studied and played and this daughter of mine is working.'

Meet Chameli, a wife and 30 year old mother of three girls. Chameli lives in Bangladesh and works in a garment factory that supplies clothing to a major Australian household and clothing department store. Chameli, along with 469 other garment factory workers from both Bangladesh and Vietnam, was interviewed by Oxfam Australia, the Bangladesh Institute for Labour studies, and the Institute for Workers and Trade Unions in Vietnam.

Chameli’s story is one of many that highlight how modern slavery in the fashion industry is a growing global problem. According to a 2018 report conducted by the Walk Free Foundation, the garment industry is the second largest contributor to modern slavery, with only technology worse. In this context, modern slavery can be understood as the severe exploitation of an individual for another parties personal or commercial gain.

Chameli is one of these exploited individuals. She earns about 51 cents an hour, contributing to just $128 a month, despite working 11-hour days and regularly finishing as late as 3.00am during busy shipment times. Due to family tragedy and illness, coupled with her dismal wage, Chameli found debt bondage unavoidable. This resulted in forced labour and witnessing her 14 year old daughter having to work the same hours and conditions she endures just so the family can survive.

Unfortunately, Chameli’s situation is not unique. The Walk Free Foundation states that over 40.3 million people are living in modern slavery globally, including 24.9 million in forced labour. ‘Over 70% of victims of modern slavery- nearly 30 million- are estimated to be women and girls.’ The majority of these women work in garment factories creating fast fashion, a term used to describe the exploitative practice of replicating fashion trends and mass producing them at low cost. A Deloitte Access study for Oxfam found factory workers were on average paid 4% of a garment’s retail price. This means when a $25 dress is sold, only $1 goes into the pocket of a worker. Many countries like Bangladesh, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, China and Brazil have high involvement of modern slavery in garment factories, which tends to extend all the way down the supply chain through every stage of raw material production.

According to the Global Slavery Index 2018 report, over 125 billion items of fashion garments created using some form of modern slavery are imported annually into G20 countries. Among these countries, which account for 80 percent of world trade, only seven have formally enacted laws, policies or practices to prohibit businesses and governments from using modern slavery. While the majority of these countries enjoy access to many affordable clothing outlets and shopping malls, the stories, faces and lives of the individuals working behind the fashion industry largely remain unseen by the people doing the shopping. ‘Who made my clothes’, Fashion Revolution founders Carry Somers and Orsola de Castro began their powerful movement by encouraging consumers to ask this simple question. It stands as a reminder of the power and responsibility every consumer and company has to help end modern slavery in the apparel industry.

Chameli, who we met earlier, is just one of these hidden faces, yet her story stands as an illustration for thousands. The comprehensive report conducted by Oxfam, which detailed Chameli’s story, highlighted nine out of ten workers either skipped meals or ate inadequately to avoid going into debt, and 76% of the workers in Bangladesh had no running water in their homes. Chameli’s family of five live in a crowded compound on the outskirts of Dhaka in a 3.6 by 2.4 metre room, where the two youngest girls sleep on the floor. They share two stoves and one bathroom with five other families living in similarly cramped and uncomfortable conditions. Even with the contribution of her husband’s and daughter’s wage, Chameli’s family barely make enough to sustain themselves. Their diet consists mainly of mashed potato and spinach, with fish once or twice a week and other meats just once a month.

Similar stories have been detailed in alarming numbers. A 2016 qualitative research report uncovered nearly 200,000 young women under the Sumangali or ‘camp labour’ schemes in India, who are exposed to forced labour in the textile and garment sector. Workers were housed in company hostels with restricted freedom of movement and pay withheld until completion of their fixed-term contracts.

Likewise, in Vietnam, a media report in 2013 exposed a story of three boys escaping from a garment factory in Ho Chi Minh City where they had spent two years making clothes for no pay. One of the rescued boys reported starting at 6 a.m. and finishing work at midnight. If they made a mistake, supervisors would beat them with a stick. In Tamil Nadu, within the spinning mills of India, a 2013 study interviewed over 150 girls and women. The report found forced labour under appalling conditions, including 60 hours of work per week, restricted freedom of movement, no phone access, no sick leave, no protective equipment and being subjected to humiliating disciplinary measures. In 2017, the Fair Labour Association inspected a factory in China producing clothes for international brands. Many workers were forced to work excessively long hours to hit target productions and were paid below China’s minimum wage.

Although just a handful, these stories are real accounts of how millions of people suffer exploitation worldwide as modern slaves in the fashion industry. However, this is not an insurmountable challenge to overcome. An increase in a clothing item by as little as 1% can result in a living wage to a garment worker. It is the responsibility of fashion companies to source only ethically made garments, while the onus on consumers is to buy from such companies that do. Moreover, by supporting organisations such as Fair Trade, Anti-Slavery International and Walk Free, we can give a voice and a face to millions trapped in modern slavery in the garment industry. It is possible for people like Chameli to receive a fair wage for the work they do in order to afford food, safe housing, medical treatment and education for their children.