An undercover reporter has found that clothing on sale in high street stores is being made in Britain in dirty, dangerous and appalling conditions. Workers are frequently threatened over production targets and have to work for a pittance.
An investigation by Channel 4's Dispatch programme found that top fashion chains are producing clothes in factories where workers are treated like slaves. According to the reporter who worked at a clothing factory in Leicester for three months, employees are frequently threatened with losing their jobs if they don’t meet high production quotas.
The factory where the reporter worked was Sammi Leisurewear, which produces branded products for New Look, BHS, Peacocks, Jane Norman and C&A. He also worked for a day at Kiwi Clothing in Leicester. All the firms, other than Jane Norman, have signed an ethical trading initiative to take responsibility for workers' rights.
The workers are paid only ₤2.50 per hour, much lower than the minimum wage of ₤5.93 per hour. Many factories circumvent laws with false claims about how many hours their employees spend on the job. Quite a few factories simply pay some or all employees in cash.
There is rampant breaching of workplace safety regulations. The factory’s emergency exit was blocked by stacks of boxes, and even the main entrance was partially blocked. Moreover, the workspace was packed, the sewing machines lacked safety guards, and there was no drinking water available for employees.
Employees often have to chip in with 60 hours during a week. The factory owner wields considerable power over employees. Contracts can be terminated without assigning a reason. A substantial number of employees are illegal immigrants who cannot take recourse to the law.
