Shein finds cases of child labour and forced labour in supply chain

Shein has discovered two criminal offences in its supply chain between Q1 and Q3 2023, the Chinese fast fashion giant stated in its recently published sustainability report. Both cases, involving child labour and forced labour, were 'swiftly resolved', the company said.

Shein is ramping up checks on its suppliers, including checking workers' IDs, as the company seeks to shed its bad reputation ahead of its planned IPO in London. It has stressed that it "strictly" prohibits child labour and forced labour, which it has been accused of facilitating.

The fast fashion giant has been accused for several years by journalists and human rights activists of being lax about potential criminal offenses in its supply chain, such as forced labour. In response to the allegations that the company “allows forced labour to lower prices,” Peter Pernot-Day, chief strategy officer of the Singapore-based company, told French news outlet AFP last year: “Shein uses a forced labor blacklist compiled by the US government to look at our supply chain and see if companies are on it.”

Shein’s tone now seems more serious. “Shein strictly prohibits child labour and forced labour,” read a response in Shein’s recently released 2023 sustainability report. The response explains how the company handled the violations: “In accordance with the SRS policy in effect at the time, the offending suppliers were given 30 days to rectify their violations. Both cases were resolved expeditiously, with remedial steps including terminating contracts with underage workers, paying back wages, arranging medical checkups, and facilitating repatriation to parents or legal guardians if necessary.”

Shein said it will address the incidents with care in the future. “Our auditors are vigilant in assessing risk factors for child and forced labor during SRS audits, and any violations found are treated with the utmost seriousness.”

This article originally appeared on FashionUnited.NL. Translation via AI and edit by Rachel Douglass.