Bangladesh: 500 garment workers receive compensation after staging demonstration to demand backpay & Eid allowances from Jeans Manufacturing factory; Incl. company responses
On 31 January 2021, approximately 500 workers staged a demonstration to demand backpay and Eid allowances from Jeans Manufacturing factory in Mirpur, Bangladesh, over concerns the factory owners were allegedly closing the factory and relocating elsewhere without giving prior notice or settling workers‘ dues.
In February, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre invited Inditex, River Island, Benetton Group, Ernsting's, HEMA, Millers and Alcott - named publicly as buyers from Jeans Manufacturing on its website - to respond. River Island said it had no record of doing business with Jeans Manufacturing, while Benetton Group and Inditex said they had ended their relationship with Jeans Manufacturing in 2014 and over a year ago, respectively. Inditex also said it had received confirmation from the factory that an agreement had been reached with the local union and compensation was paid to the affected workers on 10 February. Ernsting's, HEMA, Millers and Alcott did not respond.