In accordance to UN World Commission on Environment and Development sustainable develop is

“Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs.” This is by far the most common and known definition of
sustainability. However, in accordance to the UCLA sustainability committee suitability stands for
“The physical development and institutional operating practices that meet the needs of present
users without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, particularly
with regard to use and waste of natural resources. It suggests that sustainable practices not only
support ecological sustenance but also emphasize upon human and economic health and vitality.
(Anonymous, n.d).

The True Cost, a documentary by Andrew Morgan exposed the harsh realities of the fast fashion
industry, shedding light on the impact mass production of cheap garments has caused
environmental damage and labour exploitation. While fast fashion manages to make trendy clothes
affordable to all, it’s hard to ignore the fact that the cheap price of these garments comes with a
heavy cost of human exploitation. The collapse of the Rana Plaza in Bangladesh in 2013, leading to a
death toll of 1129, have made many around the globe question the working conditions of garment
workers in the developing world. Not long before the Rana Plaza incident, a fire at Tarzeen Fashions
in Dhaka had broken out in November 2012, and a few months prior to that on a single day two fires
had broken out in Pakistan the first one being at Ali Enterprises Textiles in Karachi and at another
factory in Lahore. Thus, making it three fashion industry catastrophes in less than a year. This
resulted in widespread criticism of fast fashion giants that outsourced production to poor countries.
The buyers from Rana Plaza included Mango, Zara, Joe Fresh and many more. (Guillermo C. Jimenez,
2014)

1 out of 6 people in the world works in some of the other spheres of the fashion industry, making it a
labour-dependent industry (Morgan, 2015). The drop-in prices have led outsourcing of labour to
developing/poor countries like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Vietnam, Turkey etc. Swedish
fast-fashion retailer, Hennes & Mauritz (H & M), operates 4100 stores in 64 markets across six
continents (as of August 2016). The fashion giant is famous for providing masses with the latest
fashion at affordable prices. The brand does not own any production units rather sources its goods
from 800 independent suppliers. 20% of its production is based out of Europe while the rest 80% is
based out of Asia. The company claims that its quality concept not only focuses its production to be
manufactured by having the least negative environmental impact but also focuses on good
working/labour conditions. (Bhagat et.al,2017) However, this is contradictory to the instance where
14-year-olds were discovered to be working in a garment manufacturing unit in Myanmar from
where H&M sourced its goods from. On the other hand, a report from global labour justice narrates
an instance where women were subjected to harassment in an H&M supplier factory in Bengaluru,
India. Harassment was served as a punishment for not meeting the production targets, it reflected in
forms of beating and molestation. However, Radhika, the victim had no other option than to
continue with her job. She couldn’t afford to quit as her husband's death had left her as the only
breadwinner of the family.

Radhika’s experience as a garment worker in a developing country provides insight into the
exploitation of women in fast fashion garment supply chains. Majority of the garment workforce
comprises of women. In countries like Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Bangladesh women
constitute to 80 – 95% of the workforce whereas in India women account up to 60 – 70% of the
workforce in the garment industry. (Global Labour Justice Organisation, 2018) Thus making their
protection in the workplace an important issue.
Exploitation finds its roots not only in poor infrastructure, unsuitable work conditions, and
harassment but also in the form of extremely low wages or no wages. The shoppers at a Zara store in
Istanbul found hidden notes in there stating, “I made the clothes you are about to buy, but I didn’t
get paid for it.” They were hidden by the workers of a Zara supplier factory based out of Istanbul,
they had failed to pay wages to their workers due to overnight bankruptcy. (Richards, 2017)

The garment workers of Asia are not found to be earning a decent wage. The workers in Asia who
produce a T-Shirt for a fashion giant will only earn 1% of what the t-shirt retails at. Due to immense
criticism brands like Marks & Spencer’s have adopted Cooperate social responsibility practices by
promising to incorporate fair labour practices in their global supply chains. (Starmanns, 2017)

Organisations like the Clean Clothes Campaign have emphasized upon the importance of a ‘Living
Wage.’ A ‘Living Wage’ stands for a wage earner in a standard working week, consisting no more
than 48 hours, enabling the garment worker to buy food for himself/herself and for their families, to
pay for education, healthcare, clothing, transportation, and rent. And to be able to have a small
amount of savings despite daily expenses. The International Labour Organisation has declared Living
Wage as a basic human right. (Clean Clothes Campaign, n.d)

These instances narrate the tales of exploitation, helplessness, and vulnerability of the workers in
the fast fashion industry. They tell us about the heavy price of cheap clothing and the dark side that
hides beneath the façade of high street glamour. A garment worker in the documentary, The True
cost stated that these clothes are not only made by their hands but their blood.

However due to large hue and criticism. Corporate Social responsibility is being considered. Post the
Rana Plaza incident, many fashion cooperation’s were pressured to act. Two months post the
collapse, two main approaches had emerged. These included the Accord on Fire and Building Safety
in Bangladesh and Alliance for Bangladesh Safety workers. Though these approaches aim to bring
reform, they were widely criticized as they weren't legally binding and were only restricted to
Bangladesh and didn’t take into consideration other manufacturing units situated across the globe.
(Guillermo C. Jimenez, 2014)

Though fast fashion isn't sustainable when talking about environmental sustainability, it also fails to
comply with ethical labour practices. Eileen Fisher, a high-end fashion retailer who aims to
incorporate sustainable and ethical practices in its supply chain, has called the clothing industry the
second largest polluter in the world. This statement can be supported by the fact that in 2013, 1.5
million tons of waste was created by textiles.

(REID, 2018)

The unsustainable practices in the industry are a call for sustainability and ethical labour practices.
The sustainable development Goals, issued by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
are a universal call to end poverty, protect the planet and to ensure that all people enjoy peace and
prosperity (United Nations Development Programme, n.d.)

Thus, companies are now using and adapting to circular production model which recycles and
transforms the product to its original fibers and components to be recreated as a new product.
The vision of a circular model to practice zero wastes (Anon., n.d.) Reducing the impact of
the environmental footprint of a mass production model. A Swedish consultancy firm green
strategy created a platform for the industry for circular fashion for brands to collaborate for
longevity and design for a purpose (Lejeune, n.d.).
This has already been put into implementation by many companies like C&A, Patagonia,
Everlane, people Tree etc. (Anon., n.d.)
These are companies producing clothes at the similar pricing that of fast fashion but maintain
an approach of sustainability. Patagonia is the first company being most effective in
implementing sustainability as being certified as B crop by B lab. (Lim, 2016,)
Companies like DNA forensic technology and Transparency company help brands get less
opaque and this started companies to have a ranking on transparency index. This has made
brands like C& A making their brand having Sustainable lives(workforce), Products and
supply Laws like Duty of care laws (France) are forcing companies to precise transparent and
ethical business (Koh, 2017)
The new concept of sustainability is the “Triple Bottom Line”, which consists of social, environmental
and economic performance aspects. The Sustainability Society Foundation (SSI) has well-defined the
three aspects of Triple Bottom Line: human wellbeing refers to social performance, which includes
basic needs, personal development, well-balanced society; environmental wellbeing includes healthy
environment, climate and energy, and natural resources; economic wellbeing is related with
preparation for future and economy.

Focusing on SDG 5 & 8 there are laws and regulations which export houses, suppliers and other
logistics department which need to follow like The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (the “ID Act”), The
Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 (the “Standing Orders Act”), The Payment of
Wages Act, 1936 the “PW Act”) But these are not checked and implemented and mostly the labour
are exploited due to unawareness and social vulnerability that hey are not informed or are
threatened to be unemployed if they don’t agree to the rules of their employers and are usually
oppressed when they try to form union according to global labour justice report 2018

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