Recently, fashion has received a poor name due to its numerous harmful environmental effects and unethical labor practices. However, a shift is coming.
Design and cutting-edge technologies are frequently the first things that come to mind when discussing the future of fashion. It makes sense, of course, because fashion with a capital “F” is all about stunning attire that evokes a certain emotion. Even if all of it is a part of the story, there is more to it. Millions of people worldwide make up the fashion ecosystem. We see so many different people in our closets, from the farm to the workplace, the warehouses to the runways.
They have long been disregarded in favor of corporate profits. What’s worse is that there are no regulations or rules safeguarding workers in the fashion industry from the particular difficulties faced by the industry. I spoke to workers and activists about my book, Worn Out: How Our Clothes Cover Up Fashion’s Sins, over the course of the past year. As a result of my investigation, several women came forward with accounts of management abuse and harassment, unsafe working conditions, and extremely little pay while producing garments for companies that made billion-dollar profits. One woman in particular revealed that even though she would work for days without seeing the light, her compensation was still insufficient to provide for her family.
Her manager constantly harassed and threatened her, and she was unable to stop it for fear of retaliation. These abuses are not abnormal, several people explained to me. They are everywhere in fashion and have been disregarded for far too long.
But things have changed recently. Labor unions, advocacy groups, legislators, and grassroots organizers are gaining ground in all sections of the garment business and demanding meaningful change. The Model Alliance, for example, attempts to improve how firms are allowed to engage with models and creatives in part to address how contractors (which includes models) have been taken advantage of through dishonest management methods. Brad Holyman’s New York State bill, The Fashion Workers Act, is a recent piece of legislation that is advancing this effort.
Some of the suggested policy adjustments would entail items that at first glance may not appear complicated, such as requiring that contracts be authorized by models and creatives and obtaining their consent before to renewing any contracts or collaborations with a client. In accordance with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, it would also prohibit the management firm or client from participating in discrimination or harassment based on race or ethnicity. Models working as contractors has made it easier for agencies and clients to avoid already existing employment laws. They would have a means to report these violations if this bill were to pass.
During a press conference for Fashion Week, Model Alliance founder Sara Ziff discussed the need for change. She claimed that “New York gains enormous advantage from the labor of young women and girls who are virtually indentured, paying off a debt they can never return to exploitative management companies.”
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand said, “It’s time to take decisive action at the Federal level to change the fabric of the American clothing manufacturing business.”
On the side of garment workers, legislation like California’s SB62 has sparked a sea change for those who actually produce our clothing in the country. Workers who received what is known as a piece-rate payment from their employers had no recourse prior to the law’s adoption in September 2021. This resulted in pay of about $200 per week, significantly below the legal minimum wage, as workers were compensated for each item they produced rather than at an hourly rate. Now, because of organization efforts conducted by employees and advocates at The Garment Worker Center and organizations like Remake, problems may be reported and dealt with by the state government.
On the federal level, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand sponsored The FABRIC Act in May 2022, which offers grant programmed and tax advantages for firms looking to create in the United States, as well as expanding the anti-wage theft statute of SB62 nationally.
“From the fashion industry to the halls of Congress, support for the Fashioning Accountability and Building Real Institutional Change (FABRIC) Act is only growing stronger. The FABRIC Act has over 150 endorsers from around the country including states like Texas, North Carolina, Michigan, and Tennessee in addition to our partners in California and New York,” the Senator told IN Style in a statement via email.
Since the bill was introduced earlier this year, a number of my congressional colleagues have joined me in supporting it and the investments it makes in our domestic manufacturing economy. As we continue to educate people about this issue, more and more people realize that it is time to take bold action at the Federal level to change the structure of the American garment manufacturing industry.
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Fashion may convey tales and alter how we feel, but no one should suffer for that because, in the future, they may not have to, thanks to the work of grassroots organizers and activists. While policy may not be the most glamorous aspect of fashion, it can give our apparel purpose.
