Italy’s competitors watchdog mentioned Wednesday that it was investigating the posh style teams Armani and Dior over the alleged exploitation of employees of their provide chain.
As a part of the probe, the AGCM watchdog and the Guardia di Finanza monetary police on Tuesday carried out inspections on the headquarters of Giorgio Armani SpA and G.A. Operations SpA in addition to Christian Dior Italia Srl, the watchdog mentioned.
The investigation comes after items of Armani and Dior have been individually positioned beneath judicial administration earlier this 12 months following considerations over labor regulation violations by subcontractors.
In an announcement, the competitors watchdog mentioned it had opened an investigation into the Armani and Dior group firms for alleged unfair industrial practices.
“In some cases, the companies may have used supplies from workshops employing workers who would receive inadequate wages,” it mentioned.
The employees can also be alleged to have labored “hours in excess of the legal limits and in inadequate health and safety conditions, in contrast to the boasted levels of production excellence,” it mentioned.
The watchdog can also be trying into potential violations of the buyer code in the best way some firms within the Armani and Dior teams promoted and bought garments and equipment.
“In both cases, the companies may have issued untrue statements about their ethics and social responsibility, in particular with regard to working conditions and compliance with the law by their suppliers,” it mentioned.
It famous that the businesses – which promote purses costing hundreds of euros – “emphasized craftsmanship and quality.”
“However, in order to make certain articles and clothing accessories the companies allegedly used supplies from workshops and factories employing workers who would receive inadequate wages,” it added.
“In addition, such workers would work hours in excess of the legal limits and in inadequate health and safety conditions, in contrast to the production excellence levels the companies pride themselves.”
In an announcement, the Armani group mentioned its firms have been “fully committed to cooperate with the authorities,” including they believed the allegations “have no merit.”
Dior didn’t reply to a request for remark.
‘Chinese factories’
In April, an Italian court docket positioned a unit of Armani beneath partial judicial administration for one 12 months, after it discovered one among its suppliers used subcontractors that violated labor legal guidelines.
Giorgio Armani Operations – an organization wholly owned by Giorgio Armani, which offers with the design and manufacturing of the label’s garments and equipment – was not itself accused of wrongdoing.
But the court docket mentioned one among its suppliers subcontracted manufacturing within the Milan space to what it known as “Chinese workshops” primarily using Chinese and Pakistan nationals in exploitative situations.
Armani mentioned on the time that it was totally cooperating with authorities and had “always had control and prevention measures in place to minimize abuses in the supply chain.”
In June, a Milan court docket ordered that one other high style firm be positioned beneath judicial administration, for what police mentioned was a failure to stop labor exploitation inside its provide chain.
The firm was extensively reported to be Manufactures Dior Srl, a unit of Christian Dior Italia. Dior is owned by the French big LVMH.
According to a police assertion on the time, the agency outsourced the manufacturing of a part of its 2024 assortment of baggage and equipment to third-party firms.
An investigation recognized suppliers described as “Chinese factories, which managed to reduce costs by resorting to the use of irregular and illegal workers in exploitative conditions.”
Four such factories have been checked, “all of them irregular,” police mentioned. They employed 32 folks, together with seven who didn’t have the right paperwork and two who have been in Italy illegally.
Their pay was poor for lengthy hours of labor, with employees additionally housed in illegally constructed and unsanitary dormitories, police mentioned.
Source: www.dailysabah.com