An undercover investigation into British clothing retailer Boohoo’s production practices found evidence that the fashion giant is reneging on its previous promises to produce fairly and ethically produced clothing. Boohoo had claimed to have improved its workflows.
The fast fashion giant was the subject of a report by the British television station BBC, for which reporter Emma Lowther worked incognito for ten weeks at Boohoo’s headquarters in Manchester as an administrative assistant.
Lowther detailed her observations in a report and a documentary broadcast on the BBC’s video-on-demand service. During her time on Boohoo’s purchasing team, she noticed that employees were under “constant pressure to keep lowering prices.”
What seemed particularly worrying was the way suppliers were treated, who were often asked to reduce prices, occasionally also for orders that were already ready for delivery. The cases mentioned included a request for a five percent price reduction on more than 400 orders that had already been agreed or a complaint from a supplier that a ten percent price reduction had been granted without consent.
Delivery times were also questioned. During Lowther’s time with the company, these decreased from an average of ten weeks to six or even less. In addition, Boohoo demanded a five percent price reduction for each week that orders from a supplier arrived late.
Delivery times, cuts from suppliers and involuntary overtime
Boohoo’s lawyers explained that the delivery times were not unrealistic and that it was common practice to impose penalties agreed with suppliers for late deliveries.
Lowther also pointed out that Boohoo’s recently opened headquarters in Leicester, England, which was touted as a center of excellence when it opened, was not at the forefront of the group’s supply chain. Orders were manufactured in seven Moroccan factories and only four in Leicester.
The company’s lawyers explained that the British manufacturer only produces one percent of the garments and was originally founded to “provide multifaceted support to the company,” although its role has changed over time.
Furthermore, hidden film footage at the supplier MM Leicester Clothing showed that employees were required to work overtime. However, this is illegal because every factory signs a code of conduct that overtime should be voluntary. Boohoo then told the media company that factories must undergo “regular inspections”. Any breach of the code of conduct is taken “extremely seriously”. The BBC is now investigating these claims.
Boohoo faced a similar report from the Sunday Times three years ago. The British newspaper claimed there was evidence of poor working conditions and illegal wages at some suppliers in Leicester.
Boohoo then launched an independent investigation into its supply chains in the UK, which it said found “many deficiencies” that led it to terminate relationships with some suppliers and the Agenda for Change transformation program was launched called. At that time, the company promised to pay its suppliers fairly and improve the quality of the working environment. However, Boohoo has been repeatedly criticized over the years. A series of reports revealed further problems with the rights of workers in its supply chain.
With the latest scandal, attention is now once again focused on the alleged grievances at Boohoo, although the company says it has taken measures to bring about positive changes. In response to the BBC’s allegations, the company said it would invest “significant time, effort and resources in driving positive change” in “every aspect” and make improvements to its governance, ethical and compliance obligations.
This article originally appeared on FashionUnited.uk. Translated and edited by Heide Halama.