Has Primark paid its workers?
This petition is now closed.
End date: May 27, 2021
Signatures collected: 3431
This campaign is now closed. We launched the campaign because Primark was quick to cancel all of their orders already placed with factories when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. The cancelled orders had a devastating effect, leaving suppliers with a shortfall in cash and resulting in workers going without their wages. After intense pressure from campaigners, Primark eventually agreed to pay for their orders- but the impact of withholding payments for orders still had a devastating impact on workers wages.
Nearly 3500 of you signed this petition. We continue to lobby Primark behind the scenes to sign on to an enforceable binding agreement on wages and severance, and will update you on any progress. You can still read more about the campaign below.
All words, no action?
In April, after extensive campaigning from Labour Behind the Label and our partners on order cancellations, Primark announced that it had created a fund to help pay the wages of workers linked to orders that were due for shipment in the month after they were cancelled in 7 countries: Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
However, Primark has not shared how they ensured that the money reached workers, what measures were taken in other countries in which Primark produces, how the brand calculated how much it had to pay and if all workers have been paid in full. The brand also stipulated that the wage compensation would be adjusted to account for government support packages, a caveat that has caused confusion among suppliers and industry bodies. Despite the lack of transparency, Primark claims that the program has been implemented successfully.
What do we want Primark to do?
Primark has a duty to protect all the workers in its supply chain, and to make sure that they are paid their wages. Primark also has a duty to provide the facts to support their claims of successful wage payment. Primark has had strong post-lockdown trading, it must now assure us that their profits have not been made off the back of unpaid labour.
We are calling on Primark to publish on their website, their commitment to ensure that all workers in their supply chain are paid their legally mandated or regular wages and benefits, whichever is higher. This includes wage arrears (back pay) and, where applicable, negotiated severance pay.
If Primark truly believes that their wage fund has been implemented successfully, they should have no problem guaranteeing that all their workers will be paid throughout the pandemic and beyond.