The Primark legacy

One of the most notorious High Street chain's accused of exploiting child labour is Primark. Its use of sweated labour to produce cheap fashion has been a hot topic recently. In 2005 Ethical Consumer voted Primark most unethical fashion store. Three years later, BBC's Panorama put Primark's claim that it can deliver cheap, fast fashion without breaking ethical guidelines to the test. Its findings shook the fashion buying public.

More than 4 million viewers tuned in to watch the hour-long special 'Primark: On the Rack'. Panorama found some of India's poorest people working long hours in slum workshops reminiscent of refugee camps. Reporter Tom Heap visited three factories in India posing as an industry buyer. Heap captured footage so bad that it even shocked experts who thought they had seen the fashion world's murkiest depths. The gruelling hours and insalubrious conditions are a far cry from the Primark-approved and inspected factories the company wants its consumers to see; breaking promises on child labour, working hours and wages. Primark's response to the investigation was to sack some of its key suppliers and announce it was setting up a children's foundation.

So did this insight into the murky world of child exploitation actually stop people from buying the clothes? Sadly not. Primark has since been one of the few high-street brands to announce year-on-year profits. But the fight to end the exploitation goes on, with campaign groups and charities calling for action…

20/07/2010 21:22

Four children have been rescued from a Delhi sweatshop after a seven-year-old boy was found working 98 hours a week making Christmas gifts destined for Britain.

The boy, known as Ravi, was filmed working with seven other youngsters at the sweatshop used by an export firm that supplies cut-price chain store Poundland.

Dressed in rags, Ravi appeared emaciated and with marks on his face. An undercover report revealed he was working from 9am to 11pm, seven days a week, earning 7p an hour. The rescued children were taken to a safe house to await a reunion with their parents. Eight-year-old Mohammad Hussain said: "I was brought to Delhi by a person who paid £14 to my family." The sweatshop delivers goods such as notebooks and mirrors to an Indian exporter Trishulin Overseas which in turn supplies Poundland. Following the rescue, Poundland issued a statement saying it had launched an investigation into Trishulin's compliance with its code of conduct.

"As a result, all orders with Trishulin Overseas have been placed on hold," it said. "Trishulin Overseas is a new supplier to Poundland and, to date, Poundland has not received or sold any products supplied by the company. Poundland does not tolerate child labour under any circumstances and will not work with companies that employ children. Should we find that Trishulin Overseas has breached our code of practice, its products will not be sold in any Poundland store."

Read the full story on http://www.metro.co.uk/news/835669children-paid-7p-an-hour-to-make-poundland-gifts