Saturday, 2 March 2019

'Girl Power' t-shirts removed from sale amid claims of exploitation in Bangladeshi factory


T-shirts bearing the "Girl Power" slogan have been removed from sale following allegations that workers were being exploited at the factory where they are made.

Sold by the F= website which aims to "provide modern day women with inspiration, motivation, and empowerment through the success stories of women", the garments were retailing at £28, although £10 was donated to Worldreader, a charity that provides people in developing countries with access to a digital library.

None of the profits went to F=.

While the slogans were printed in the UK, the organic cotton T-shirts were made by Belgian brand Stanley/Stella in Bangladesh in a factory owned by a firm called Dird Composite Textiles.

More than 100 workers in the factory were recently relieved of their jobs following a strike this January, which saw thousands of workers in Bangladesh protest low wages, according to an investigation by The Guardian which also claimed that some workers at the factory earn approximately 42p an hour.

It also alleged that a female employee had been beaten under the orders of managerial staff.

Responding to the allegations one of the co-founders of F=, Danielle Newnham, posted an open letter on the company's website.

Read more here