Uniqlo & s.Oliver garment workers still owed $5.5 mn in severance pay

19 April 2022, Mumbai:

Uniqlo and s.Oliver garment workers still owed $5.5 million in severance pay: workers release open letter on 7th anniversary of factory closure.

Today, former garment workers from the bankrupt Jaba Garmindo factory in Indonesia release an open letter to the chairman of Uniqlo (Fast Retailing) and the CEO of s.Oliver, calling on the brands to finally pay up.

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April 22nd marks the 7th anniversary of the Jaba Garmindo factory bankruptcy in Indonesia, and 2,000 Indonesian garment workers have been fighting for the $5.5 million legally owed to them in severance pay since 2015.

The workers made clothes for Uniqlo and German fashion brand s.Oliver, among others. To mark the 7th anniversary of the factory closure, the workers have released an open letter (available here) calling on Tadashi Yanai, chairman and biggest shareholder of Fast Retailing (Uniqlo’s parent company), and Claus-Dietrich Lahrs, CEO of s.Oliver, and demanding the brands finally pay up.

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Severance theft is a known risk in the garment industry and brands have a responsibility, as stipulated under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights to do their due diligence and mitigate against risks.

When failing to do so, they must take immediate steps to remedy rights violations.

In the case of Jaba Garmindo, both Uniqlo (under parent company Fast Retailing) and s.Oliver failed to mitigate against the risk and both are still refusing to take any meaningful steps towards remedy and justice.

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