"Overworked and Underpaid: Excessive hours, wage theft and poor working conditions in Pakistan’s garment export factories", July 2025

A July 2025 report by Arisa on Pakistan’s garment export factories, highlights “persistent violations of labour and human rights” for workers in Pakistan’s export-oriented garment sector. The research, covering eight factories in Karachi and Lahore supplying brands including H&M, Inditex, Levi Strauss, Bestseller, C&A, Gap, Kontoor Brands, Mango, Next, Boohoo and Primark, found “wages significantly below living wage benchmarks, excessive and often mandatory overtime, unsafe and unhealthy workplaces, and the suppression of workers’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining.” The study notes: “Systemic issues persist… deeply rooted in the structural power imbalances that define global garment supply chains. International brands and retailers, positioned at the top of these chains, wield disproportionate influence over pricing and sourcing decisions, often leading to compromises on workers’ rights.”

The report documents that “only 23 per cent of interviewed workers were women,” and that “trade unionisation level among Pakistan’s garment workers is less than 1 per cent.” It also highlights caste-based discrimination and the particular vulnerability of workers from scheduled caste and minority backgrounds: “Caste-affected communities in Pakistan face deep-rooted discrimination and severe socioeconomic hardship… Forced labour remains a serious concern, particularly in the cotton and cotton seed sectors.” The report concludes with a call for “international brands and retailers sourcing from Pakistan to ensure decent work and compliance with international labour standards in their supply chains – now more than ever.”

Prior to publication in April 2025, researchers shared the report’s findings with all implicated international brands and retailers for comment and to correct any factual errors. The researchers also urged brands to ensure the safety of interviewed workers and prevent any retaliation in response to the report.