To: Melanie Steiner, Senior Vice President, Chief Risk Officer
Tell PVH to stop violence against union leaders in Bangladesh!
Tell PVH Corp. (owner of Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger) to cut ties with the Azim Group for their use of violent retaliation against union leaders organizing in Bangladeshi garment factories.
Why is this important?
Over the past several months, union leaders in Bangladesh, organizing for better wages and conditions, have been met with violent retaliation. One union president, Mira Boashak, was brutally assaulted by a group of thugs, who, acting on behalf of factory management, beat her with iron rods causing a severe head injury that required more than a dozen stitches. Who is the culprit behind these horrific assaults? The Azim Group, a supplier for companies like PVH Corp. (owner of brands like Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger).
Less than three months after Mira was attacked, several female union leaders were targeted by a group of factory managers and supervisors who punched and kicked them - tearing their clothing in the process and making them fearful of returning to work. These cases are just a few examples of the type of violence Bangladeshi workers have faced while organizing for basic rights in the workplace such as living wages and access to fire safety.
Despite repeated requests from labor rights advocates, PVH has not done enough to put a stop to this campaign of anti-union violence and ensure that its supplier respects workers’ freedom of association. At the behest of the union in Bangladesh, PVH has been asked to terminate its relationship with this supplier unless the Azim Group immediately negotiates a resolution with the union. But PVH refuses to set a deadline for termination, leaving workers afraid for their lives.
Workers producing our holiday gifts, winter clothes, and collegiate apparel can't live in fear another day, join us in demanding justice for workers in Bangladesh.
Less than three months after Mira was attacked, several female union leaders were targeted by a group of factory managers and supervisors who punched and kicked them - tearing their clothing in the process and making them fearful of returning to work. These cases are just a few examples of the type of violence Bangladeshi workers have faced while organizing for basic rights in the workplace such as living wages and access to fire safety.
Despite repeated requests from labor rights advocates, PVH has not done enough to put a stop to this campaign of anti-union violence and ensure that its supplier respects workers’ freedom of association. At the behest of the union in Bangladesh, PVH has been asked to terminate its relationship with this supplier unless the Azim Group immediately negotiates a resolution with the union. But PVH refuses to set a deadline for termination, leaving workers afraid for their lives.
Workers producing our holiday gifts, winter clothes, and collegiate apparel can't live in fear another day, join us in demanding justice for workers in Bangladesh.