Primark is a large fashion retailer in the UK, mass-marketing low-price and simple-design garments. In 2008, BBC’s Panorama programme revealed that Primark’s three suppliers in India had employed subcontracted smaller firms, where the source of labor came from child refugee camps. At the bottom of the supply chain, were children of war refugees and orphans hand-sewing clothes in dreadful working conditions. They had high volume of tasks and long working hours in small, dark, uncomfortable working stations, with low and unfixed pays – the wages of five children is less than the cost of hiring an adult. This caused work damages of eyesight and fingers.

Primark had terminated relations with the suppliers involved in child labor and withdrew thousands of affected garments from the stores. But child labor continues to be an issue in today’s labor market, particularly in developing and labor intensive countries, such as India and China. As the demand for cheap, fashionable products grew and companies move towards mass production for greater profits and more competitive prices, how can children be completely removed from the manufacture chain? Generally, how can ethical employment practices (i.e., minimum wages, good working conditions, workers’ rights) be assured?

Article link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/22/india.humanrights