“Spinning around workers’ rights. International labour in Tamil Nadu spinning mills”, 27 May 2021

…. Large-scale research undertaken by SOMO and Arisa, of 29 spinning mills in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, presented in the report ‘Spinning Around Workers’ Rights’, has revealed this exploitation…

Labour conditions in Tamil Nadu spinning mills are appalling. Under pressure and threats, workers are made to work excessive overtime … Employers take advantage of the vulnerable position of these labour migrants, who are often recruited with false promises... Since the Corona crisis this situation has only worsened: more forced overtime, less salary and mass dismissals.

Yarns and fabrics from Tamil Nadu mills are processed into garments and household textiles for European and North American markets … SOMO and Arisa … [identified] links between the 29 spinning mills under investigation and ten companies operating internationally: Carrefour, GAP, IKEA, Marc O’Polo, NEXT, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, The Cookie Company Group, WE Fashion, and Zeeman…

Tamil Nadu has, for years, been infamous for the poor working conditions in the garment and textile industry based there…