A total of 1,000 factories were surveyed for the study and found that many were paid the same prices as before the pandemic two years ago – despite soaring costs of materials. The report looked at the period from March 2020 to December 2021.
“Two years on from the start of the pandemic, Bangladeshi garment workers were not being paid enough to live on, with one in five manufacturers struggling to pay minimum wage while many fashion brands which use Bangladeshi labour increased their profits,” said Muhammad Azizul Islam, a Professor of Sustainability accounting and transparency at University of Aberdeen and the project’s lead.
“Inflation rates soaring around the world are likely to have exacerbated this even further,” he added.
He also said larger brands buying from many factories were engaging in unfair purchasing practices more frequently than smaller brands, according to suppliers.
One in five factories surveyed for the research said they struggled to pay Bangladesh’s £2.30 a day minimum wage.
The study found that 90% of larger high street brands buying from four or more factories were reported as engaging in unfair purchasing practices; which included cancellations, failure to pay, delays in payment, and discount demands; with knock-on effects including forced overtime and harassment.
Several retailers denied the claims made in the report.
“Retailers say in their reports that they have a commitment to the workers and they have made progress, but transparency is a big problem in the sector and it is difficult to establish if certain products are ethically produced,” Professor Muhammad Azizul Islam further said.
