is equal
The fashion industry is engaging in buying practices that encourage forced and child labour, exploitation and abuse. These practices continue to run unchecked without strong laws or penalties. It’s time to end this modern slavery.
The Australian Government must step up and prevent the import of clothes made from forced labour.
Add your name to our petition to the Attorney General of Australia and demand responsible business practices now.
Our research has revealed:
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Evidence of children as young as 7 working excessive hours in subcontracted factories.
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Evidence of forced labour.
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95% of factory workers surveyed are paid below a living wage (100% among women).
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Verbal, physical, and sexual harassment, especially targeting women, children and informal workers permeate the industry.
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Almost one quarter of interviewees said fingerprint-based attendance systems were used for blacklisting – barring workers from new jobs when fired for speaking out.
Our report exposes how the supply chain system leads to and hides modern slavery. Most Australian fashion brands source their clothes from countries considered high-risk for modern slavery meaning they could be exposed to these abuses.
Brands who prioritise profit over people are not going to change their practices without pressure.
That’s why we’re calling on the Australian Government to strengthen the Modern Slavery Act, introduce binding responsible business laws, and ban imports made with forced labour. These reforms must prevent harm before it happens, hold companies accountable, involve workers in decisions, and guarantee justice for people harmed by exploitation.
Responsible business laws benefit everyone — workers, families and the community — by protecting people and our planet. Add your name to our petition and demand responsible business practices now.
The letter
I call on the Australian Government to urgently strengthen Australia’s laws to protect workers — especially women and children — from exploitation and abuse.
- Forced labour, including threats, withheld wages and documents, and physical abuse.
- Child labour, with children as young as 7 working excessive hours for poverty wages.
- Verbal, physical, and sexual harassment, especially targeting women, children and informal workers.
- Blacklisting and dismissal of older or “troublesome” workers who stand up for their rights or try to unionise.
- The use of opaque subcontracting arrangements that hides the link between these practices and international brand.
We therefore urge the Australian Government to:
- Strengthen the Modern Slavery Act by introducing mandatory human rights due diligence requirements, backed by enforcement and penalties for non-compliance.
- Introduce a comprehensive human rights and environmental due diligence law that requires companies to prevent and remedy harms throughout their supply chains, including paying living wages and improving purchasing practices.
- Establish an import ban on goods produced using forced labour, modelled on similar laws in the United States and European Union, to prevent exploitation-linked goods from entering the Australian market.
Australia is deeply connected to these exploitative supply chains. With less than 3% of our clothing made locally, we have a duty to ensure the people who make our clothes are treated with dignity, paid fairly, and free from abuse.
Over 80% of Australians support stronger regulation to ensure fair wages for garment workers. Now is the time for action.
We call on the Attorney-General to lead legislative reforms that hold corporations accountable and end modern slavery in our supply chains.
Signed,
[First Name, Last Name]
Report: Unravelling Exploitation — Exposing the Need for Responsible Business Laws in Fashion Supply Chains with contributions from Human Rights Law Centre.
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Fabeha Monir/Oxfam
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