IndustriAll said that H&M’s responsible business practices have cemented a constructive relationship with the global union but despite this, the Swedish fashion group “refuses to stop sourcing from Myanmar, a military dictatorship.”
The global union explained that the Myanmar Labor Alliance, which represents most of the trade union movement in Myanmar, has called on companies to divest.
Go deeper with GlobalData
IndustriAll added: “Myanmar is a military dictatorship with no freedom of association. The Myanmar Ministry of Information reports that garment exports were worth US$4.7 billion last year. The military regime desperately needs foreign exchange to buy weapons, ammunition and fuel to conduct a civil war against the population. By sourcing from Myanmar, H&M maintains a flow of foreign exchange into the country, helping to sustain the regime.”
H&M responded to the claims made by IndustriAll representatives at its AGM last week, stating that it had a strong local team and was working with the EU MADE programme. This programme has been condemned by Myanmar unions as a whitewash.
The global union IndustriAll said in a press release last November that it had begun discussions with garment brands on a responsible exit from Myanmar due to the “deteriorating human rights situation and the impossibility of due diligence”.
Two years on from the military coup, IndustriAll designed a framework on what a responsible exit looked like for garment brands wishing to exit Myanmar.
IndustriAll general secretary Atle Høie said: “We have been guided by the representatives of the affected workers, the union movement of Myanmar, to call on companies to cease their operations. This document defines a responsible exit. We call on all companies doing business in Myanmar – not just the garment industry – to use this framework to plan their exit from the country.”
As Myanmar continues on a downward spiral in the face of unprecedented political and human rights violations, a number of brands have shut operations in the country or have announced their intention to cease production.
H&M did not respond to Just Style’s request for a comment on this matter at the time of going to press.
