Boohoo mired in fresh controversy over Pakistani factory conditions

Workers at two factories producing clothes for the UK pureplay giant in the Pakistani city of Faisalabad said they faced appalling conditions and were paid just £47 a month, below the country’s minimum wage for unskilled labour, according to an investigation by The Guardian. 

The newspaper’s investigation also found evidence of potential safety issues in the factories, “including motorbikes being parked indoors next to flammable materials”. Workers told The Guardian that, in the rush to produce clothes, they had also been forced to work 24-hour shifts. 

In response, Boohoo has suspended supplier JD Fashion Ltd and factory AH Fashion from its supply chain while it investigates the claims. Another factory, Madina Gloves, denied workers’ claims that it had recently been making clothes for Boohoo.

Boohoo said it “will not tolerate any instance of mistreatment or underpayment of garment workers”. The retailer also said it was unaware of its clothes being made at Madina Gloves, and that AH Fashion was not on its approved supplier list for JD Fashion Ltd.

The statement to The Guardian continued: “As part of our international compliance programme, AH Fashion received a SMETA [Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit] audit in November 2020, where no issues of this nature were found, so these allegations are extremely concerning,” it said.

“Independent compliance and auditing specialists Bureau Veritas are on the ground in Faisalabad and we have instructed them to immediately investigate these claims … Any supplier who does not treat their workers with the respect they deserve has no place in the Boohoo supply chain.”

It is the second time in a year that the fashion giant has been embroiled in a scandal over how workers in its supply chain are treated, following revelations in the summer about working conditions in factories in Leicester supplying Boohoo with clothes. 

Following allegations of cramped staff being paid as little as £3.50 an hour and working in conditions without social distancing, originally published in The Sunday Times, Boohoo accepted the recommendations of a report from Allison Levitt QC, which described its attitude to the plight of workers in the city as “inexcusable”.

Speaking to MPs last week, Boohoo co-founder Mahmud Kamani insisted he’d been “shocked and appalled” by what was uncovered in Leicester, but attempted to defend his retailer’s use of predominantly UK sourcing. 

“It would be easy to move this offshore […] Lots of people in the fashion industry have moved offshore, and sometimes it feels we are being punished for it,” he said, referencing the fact that around 40% of Boohoo’s clothes are made in the UK.