Top H&M suppliers called out over alleged labour rights violations
Four premium suppliers for Swedish clothing giant H&M have been called out by a local labour rights group for their continued use of short-term contracts, hampering employees’ ability to unionise and, in one case, allegedly paying workers less than the $140 monthly minimum wage. In a report titled When ‘best’ is far from good enough and released on September 23, labour rights NGO Central surveyed 38 workers from four suppliers for H&M – three rated “platinum” and one “gold”, factory categories the multinational uses to rate supplier compliance to labour standards and laws. Citing H&M’s own commitments to ensure workers are paid a fair living wage, the report says that even its “top ranked” and “preferred” factories were falling short of industry averages. For instance, while the three platinum suppliers – Eastex Garment Co and Seduno Investment Cambo Fashion in Phnom Penh, and Vanco Industrial in Kandal – were found to be paying workers on average $172 a month, more than the minimum wage, the figure was still below the industry average of $178 per month.
