Unfashionable double standards?

Sarah Watts discusses the ethics behind high street clothing

Before you buy, ask questions about what's behind the label. Crispin Hughes/Oxfam

When you pick up a piece of clothing from a high street shop, what’s the first thing you notice? Probably the way it looks, then the size and price and, after you’ve worn it a couple of times, you might check to see how it should be washed. But how many of us can truthfully say we notice where our clothes are produced?

To be really honest, I’d have to admit that the facts behind the label were never something I had really considered. But recent high profile cases such as Gap employing child labour have brought the issue to public attention and have made me sit up and think. Curiosity lead me to my wardrobe and I was surprised to find that almost all of my clothes were made abroad, in places such as India and Mexico.

Surely the people who sew, cut and print our clothes are the most important people in getting them into our wardrobes? But, as western clothing chains turn to Asia to take advantage of cheaper labour costs, it is the people who make our clothes who are worst off financially. Is it too much to ask that big clothing brands treat their producers ethically?

When Gap was discovered to be using sub-contractors which rely on child labour in a Delhi factory, it quickly reacted by burning the range of girl blouses which it claimed was the only of its ranges made in the factory. It also suspended work and put the company on probation for six months.

This isn’t the first time that, when confronted with the facts, companies have quickly distanced themselves from these subcontractors in their supply chains, but is this really getting to the root of the problem? Surely burning thousands of blouses was just a waste of resources and labour? I am sceptical of the fact that only one piece of clothing was being produced through less-than-ethical means, and I am also less than convinced that so called ‘green’ ranges are just for the benefit of the planet. Is this green marketing just to sell more clothes?

Some aspects of ethical trading are on the way up, through organisations such as the Fairtrade Foundation, and there are ways that you can be sure of being a more ethical consumer. Before you buy, ask questions about what’s behind the label, like where and how it was produced, and read up on the ethical credentials of high street chains to make sure you’re in the know.

You could buy your clothes second hand or even try getting your friends round for a clothes swap - it's a great way to get rid of the stuff you don’t want and have a laugh at the same time. Then, if there are pieces left over, you could take them to a charity shop. You never know, you might find something else you like while you’re there.

Read up before you buy on www.nosweat.org.uk and www.labourbehindthelabel.org