Monday 12 January 2009

Sweat shops in the UK?

Primark has once again made the news for all the wrong reasons - this time after claims were made that it has been selling knitwear made by a company called TNS Knitwear based in Manchester whose workers earn just £3 per hour working in conditions resembling a sweatshop.

TNS Knitwear have denied the allegations and Primark is looking into the claims and while it does so has agreed to remove all references to its commitment to the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI).

Whether the allegations are true or not the story underlines the difficulties of knowing what the reality is between what the label says and what the truth really is. Stories like this not only damage the industry at large but undermine efforts made by genuine, often far smaller companies, to encourage consumers to spend money on clothing that was made by workers being paid a fair wage working in suitable conditions.

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