"South Asia: Stitched up: Denial of freedom of association for garment workers in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka", 27 Nov 2025

This Amnesty International report provides an extensive, multi-country investigation into how governments, factory owners, and global fashion brands collectively deny garment workers—predominantly women—the fundamental right to freedom of association across Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Combining 88 field interviews, factory-level testimonies, union leader insights, and a comparative review of 20 factories, the report exposes systemic patterns of union repression embedded deeply in South Asia’s garment supply chains.

The research highlights four core strategies of suppression: (1) union busting, including harassment, intimidation, and dismissals of union organizers; (2) factory retaliation when workers attempt to unionize; (3) obstacles to striking, particularly criminalization of peaceful protests; and (4) replacement of unions with pro-management “worker committees” that lack bargaining power. Workers—especially women, Dalit, migrant, and home-based workers—report widespread fear of reprisals, sexual harassment, threats, and targeting when engaging in collective action.

Amnesty documents chronic poverty wages, excessive overtime, and the industry’s dependence on informal, temporary, and piece-rate labour. Women are disproportionately concentrated in insecure jobs where caste, gender, and migration status compound exploitation. Across the region, wages remain far below living wage standards, and harassment is normalized within male-dominated management structures.

The report also finds that Special Economic Zones (SEZs/EPZs) intensify rights violations by legally restricting union activity, limiting union access, and enabling employers to retaliate with impunity. Mass criminal charges against peaceful protestors—especially in Bangladesh—further suppress worker organizing.

Amnesty’s analysis emphasises that global brands and retailers, while benefiting from South Asia’s low-cost production, often fail to ensure suppliers respect freedom of association. Many companies lack adequate due diligence systems, transparency, or engagement with independent unions, perpetuating a cycle of exploitation.

Key Recommendations

• To states: Remove legal barriers to unionization; ensure access to collective bargaining; guarantee protection from retaliation; enforce living wages; ratify all fundamental ILO conventions; and address gender- and caste-based discrimination.
• To brands: Implement mandatory human rights due diligence; ensure supplier accountability; support independent unions; guarantee living wages; and provide remedy for workers facing retaliation.
• To suppliers: End union-busting, recognize independent unions, provide transparent contracts, prevent gender-based violence, and ensure equal pay and safe grievance mechanisms.
• Overall, the report concludes that the garment industry’s business model depends on systematic rights violations, and meaningful change requires coordinated action from governments, brands, and suppliers.

Amnesty International also sent 21 major brands and retailers based in nine countries a survey in November 2023, requesting information about their policies, monitoring and concrete actions related to freedom of association, gender equality and purchasing practices. Of the 21 companies, adidas, ASOS, Fast Retailing, Inditex, Otto Group and Primark provided full responses. Marks and Spencer and Walmart provided a summary of policies and commitments relating to freedom of association, internal committees, supplier codes of conduct and purchasing practices. PVH and Sainsbury’s stated they could not complete the survey but sent in links to online, publicly available reports and policies. H&M responded and discussed the survey objectives with Amnesty International, but ultimately did not return the survey. BESTSELLER responded with clarifications, but did not return the survey. C&A, Boohoo, Morrisons and Tesco replied to say they did not have the capacity to complete the survey, Amazon was “unable to respond” and Next, “not able to participate”. Tesco did send links to external materials. Gap and Desigual did not respond at all. Shein responded but stated that it does not source from any of the four countries surveyed. Right to reply letters were sent to all 21 companies who received the survey along with all factories named by interviewees in the report. Letters were also sent to the relevant Ministries in all four states. Where relevant, information contained in response to these letters has been included in this report.