Part 2: How do I check if my uniform is made ethically?
If you’ve read Part 1 of this blog series (if you haven’t we encourage you to click through and take a look), you now know that most of our clothes, including school uniforms, are made in a way that is harmful for people and planet. But how can you tell if your uniform is made ethically or not? In Part 2 of our Uniform Revolution series, we will share a few different steps you can take to learn more about the story behind your uniform.
Step 1: Check the Tag
The easiest way to find out more about your school uniform is to check the tag. Usually the information is quite basic and will include where the garment was stitched together, what it’s made from and how to wash it. This really doesn’t tell you very much so you will need to do more digging.
There is a chance that the label will say something like, 100% organic cotton, recycled polyester or Fairtrade certified. This is a good sign and demonstrates that your uniform supplier is thinking about their impact. However, certifications are one part of the story and you still need to investigate further.
Step 2: Do More Research
Head to your uniform supplier’s website to learn more. Below is a list of some of the websites of the most common uniform suppliers in Melbourne. Look for any information the business shares about sustainability, manufacturing or social and environmental impact. We have had a quick check and not all of the websites have this information available. However, we encourage you to check it out for yourself.
Step 3: Contact Your Uniform Supplier
After you’ve had a look at their website, It’s time to get in touch with your uniform supplier and ask questions. You can contact them via email or through social media, whatever you feel comfortable with.
This may feel a little scary and you might not be sure about what questions you should ask them. Don’t panic, we’ve got you covered! To make it easy, we’ve put together a list of questions for you to choose from. There is also a glossary at the end of this blog post if you’re not familiar with some of the terms.
Make sure your message or email is polite, and you outline who you are and why you are asking questions about your uniform. It’s good for your supplier to hear that you care about the social and environmental impact of your uniform because it encourages them to take it more seriously. After all, their role is to give the customer what they want.
Hit send and then wait for a response. Some uniform suppliers will be really responsive and others not so much. Don’t worry if you don’t get a reply, we will address some steps you can take in the next blog post to inspire your supplier to engage with you.
If you do get a reply, make sure that they have answered the questions you actually asked. No business is perfect, but often they won’t admit that they still have work to do to improve their impact. Your uniform supplier might send through lots of information about what they are doing to dazzle you into forgetting about your original questions. If you’re unsure about how to respond or what some of the information means, please feel free to forward the email to info@humiform.org and we will be more than happy to decode it for you.
Questions about the social impact
Where is my uniform made?
Where is the fabric sourced from?
Are the people who made my uniform paid a living wage?
Do you have a code of conduct? Can I please see a copy of it?
Do the factories that you partner with allow workers to form unions?
What social certifications do your factories have? Can I please see a certificate verifying this?
How often do you audit your factories?
What goals do you have in place to improve the social impact of your supply chain?
Questions about the environmental impact
What environmental policies do you have in place in your supply chain?
Are environmental policies included in your code of conduct? If yes, can I please have a copy of the code?
What environmental certifications do your factories have? Can I please see a certificate verifying this?
What fabrics do you use?
How are you reducing the environmental impact of your supply chain?
What goals do you have in place to improve the environmental impact of your supply chain?
How do you plan to reduce your carbon emissions?
What policies do you have in place to ensure harmful chemicals are not used in the making of your clothes?
What happens to your uniforms once they are no longer able to be worn?
In Part 3 of our Uniform Revolution Series, we will share next steps and information about how you can encourage your uniform supplier to take their social and environmental impact more seriously. In the meantime, if you have any burning questions feel free to email us at info@humiform.org.
Glossary of Fashion Terms
Audit
This is when a third party (someone not connected to the uniform supplier or the factory) visits a factory and checks to see whether they are following the code of conduct (see below). When an audit is complete, the factory receives a certificate.
Audits can be problematic because sometimes auditors are bribed to look the other way when factories aren’t following the rules. When a factory fails or performs poorly on an audit, some brands will abandon the factory, whereas others will work with them to improve their operations.
Certification
A certification is a list of rules and regulations set out by a certification organisation like Fairtrade or GOTS. When a brand is certified, it means they have complied with all of these rules and regulations. Brands use certifications to help them to do the right thing. They are also a great way of signalling to your customers that you care.
In fashion you can use certifications to make sure garment workers are being treated fairly, cotton is grown organically, factories are not harming the environment and lots more. There are many different certifications but here is a list of 10 commonly found in Australia.
Code of conduct
A code of conduct is a list of rules that usually concern the health, safety and treatment of employees. Some of them have more rules than others, depending on how seriously a brand is considering their impact. Most codes of conduct focus on protecting workers but some can also include environmental rules that factories must comply with.
Forced labour
This is when people are forced to work in factories or farms against their will. It is a form of modern day slavery.
Living wage
A living wage is enough money for an employee to cover the basic needs for themselves and their family. This covers food, shelter, education and bills but they should also have enough left over to save for unforeseen expenses, like medical bills if a family member becomes ill.
A lot of brands tell their customers that the factories the work with pay their employees the legal minimum wage, however, in many countries this does not equal a living wage. Many garment workers are trapped in poverty because they are not paid enough.
Learn more about Oxfam Australia’s mission to persuade brands to pay a living wage.
Greenwashing
Greenwashing is a form of marketing used by brands to make them appear more environmentally responsible than they actually are.
A great example of this is organic bamboo which is actually a type of viscose. While the bamboo may be grown organically, the process it goes through to become fabric is much more chemically intensive than cotton or hemp. Brands like to share that their fabric is organic bamboo but don’t like to tell you the rest of the story. This is a clever marketing tactic and a form of greenwashing. For more information on bamboo, visit this website.
Modern slavery
Modern slavery is the severe exploitation of other people for personal or commercial gain. Modern slavery is all around us, but often just out of sight. People can become trapped making our clothes, serving our food, picking our crops, working in factories, or working in houses as cooks, cleaners or nannies.
From the outside, it can look like a normal job. But people are being controlled – they can face violence or threats, be forced into inescapable debt, or they have had their passport taken away and are being threatened with deportation. Definition provided by Anti-Slavery.
Pity marketing
Pity marketing is when brands share the sad stories of the disadvantaged people they employ or support in order to make customers feel pity and buy their product. This type of marketing often paints the employees as helpless victims in need of saving and the brand as their saviour. This fuels racist stereotypes.
Sub-contractors
When a factory doesn’t have the capacity to fulfil an order, it will often sub-contract the order to another factory. They will do this if they don’t have enough workers or time to complete the order on schedule.
Often a brand doesn’t know about or have any control over the subcontractor factories where their orders are being made. This means that the clothes could be made under poor conditions in factories that don’t have to sign the brand’s code of conduct.
Suppliers
A supplier refers to any factory or farm who has contributed to the creation of an item. This could include the farm where the cotton was grown, the factory where the cotton was woven or the factory where the garment was sewn together.
Supply chain
A supply chain refers to every single part of a garment’s journey.
Tier 1 of the supply chain includes garment manufacturing factories.
Tier 2 of the supply chain includes factories where fabrics are made and dyed.
Tier 3 of the supply chain is where the raw materials like cotton, hemp and oil are grown or mined.
The supply chain also includes transport.
Union
Workers come together to form unions to advocate for improvements at a factory or farm. Changes might include safety equipment, wage increases, or overtime restrictions.
The right to unionise (form a union) is a human right, however, some factories don’t allow workers to unionise because they know it will probably add costs to the way they operate.
Vertical integration
Vertical integration is when a company owns its suppliers. This benefits companies by allowing them to control processes, reduce costs and improve efficiencies.
