UPDATE FEBRUARY 2016: The Fair Labor Association (FLA) -- an organization Hugo Boss is affiliated to and pays fees to -- found numerous violations of Turkish labor law, the FLA code of conduct and Hugo Boss' own code of conduct at its wholly-owned plant in Izmir which employs more than 4,000 workers. Source: http://www.fairlabor.org/affiliate/hugo-boss
Garment workers at Hugo Boss's factory in Izmir, Turkey face severe reprisals, punishment, and even dismissals for trying to join a union. They just want a living wage and a voice in the company, but their bosses are having none of it.
We have a unique opportunity to help. Brands rarely own the factories where their garments are made -- but Hugo Boss owns this one, and it's the largest garment factory in the country.
Hugo Boss HQ could improve conditions in the Izmir factory in an instant, and could even set an industry standard for labour relations in the country.
High-fashion brands like Hugo Boss can't afford to simply ignore public pressure -- especially in countries where they aim to sell highly priced clothes to the widest audience.
Demand that Hugo Boss treat its workers fairly.
Hugo Boss is advertising its spring collection to the world of fashion, and boasting record sales and earnings to investors, it even claims to uphold internationally recognised labour standards --
but that's worlds away from what the Hugo Boss factory workers in Turkey experience.
Germany's iconic fashion label has engaged in despicable union-busting tactics, including
illegally firing 20 trade union supporters between 2011 and 2014. When it was caught by the Turkish Federal Court, Hugo Boss still refused to hire back the employees. Now, in 2015, Hugo is back at it again: it just fired three more union organizers without cause.
We've all seen and supported the intensifying fight for better wages and the right to unionize across North America and Britain in recent years. We've fought to improve working conditions in garment factories in Bangladesh, Cambodia and Haiti. Now our partners supporting Turkish garment workers need the same level of support: and Hugo Boss is spoiling for a fight.
Help us get Hugo Boss to give its workers the wages, conditions and voice they deserve.
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More information:
Independent external assessment report, FLA, January 25, 2016
HUGO BOSS: Luxury brand, garbage employer, IndustriALL, March 2, 2015
Turkey's textile industry: Improvement in sight?, Deutsche Welle, Aug 28, 2014