In an open letter to brands, garment workers from the bankrupt Jaba Garmindo factory in Indonesia garment workers have urged brands Uniqlo and s.Oliver to pay their pending dues. Around 2,000 Indonesian garment workers are demanding $5.5 million legally owed to them in severance pay since 2015. The workers made clothes for Uniqlo, s,Oliver, etc.
Both Fast Retailing and s.Oliver are affiliates of the Fair Labor Association (FLA), which released the results of their investigations of the case in July 2021. The report recommended brands to come together to establish a financial relief fund for workers. However, this has not yet materialized. With its business booming during the pandemic, Fast Retailing has become the world’s most valuable fashion retailer. Its current share price of €88.7 billion surpasses that of Inditex.
However, the pandemic has dealt a severe blow to former Jaba Garmindo workers. It has rendered many of them jobless and unable to afford vital medical care, school costs and even food. Having no social security system to support them, the workers are struggling to survive, and have to borrow money to cover daily expenses.
