"Public Statement on Deaths of Garment Workers in Nandan Denim factory, Gujarat, India", 14 February 2020

... [T]he Nandan Denim factory... [which] killed at least seven workers... is located in... a hub of denim production for the global fashion market... which is totally unregulated...

[R]eported figures of 50-60 workers... only include[s] permanent workers on payroll. Other workers... report... this particular department... employed at least 100- 150 workers... [as] most of the workers are contract labour... [without] factory identification...

[W]orkers... continued to work, even after the fire had started and were burnt because there was no adequate alarm system to trigger evacuation...

[A]udit[s]... have failed to detect large scale violation of fire, safety, building codes and labour rights in this denim hub... [which] is dominated by migrant labour living in inhuman housing conditions...

[We] supports the local trade unions and labour rights organisations’ holding global brands responsible for the egregious violations and the deaths of the workers... We demand...

• Brands take responsibility and work with trade unions and labour rights organisations to create transparent regulatory mechanisms and systems...

• Brands compensate for the death, injury and loss of employment resulting from this fire on basis of international standards on living wage and on workers’ pain and suffering.