What not to do when your favourite fashion brand is caught in a worker scandal

Your favourite fashion brand has hit the headlines, and it’s not good. Here’s how we can stand up for justice and drive lasting change in the fashion industry.

Stories of worker exploitation continue to rise across the global fashion supply chain, with accounts of garment workers facing unsafe conditions, low wages and denial of basic rights like sick leave or work breaks. These aren’t isolated incidents, but symptoms of a deeply flawed system that too often prioritises profit over people.

You might feel outraged when we hear about these injustices and our first instinct might be to boycott the brand, and perhaps even jump on social media and call on others to do the same. These reactions come from a place of empathy and a desire for justice.

Choosing to boycott a brand can be a valid way to express your values, and it’s natural to think twice about a brand if some unethical behaviour is revealed. But if that’s where our action stops, we limit our impact. True change comes when we pair our spending choices with speaking out, holding brands accountable and demanding better for the people who make our clothes.

The global fashion industry employs tens of millions of people, many of them women, in countries where job opportunities are limited so boycotts may negatively impact these workers. For many garment workers, their jobs are essential to their family’s survival. In places like Bangladesh, millions rely on jobs in fashion manufacturing as their primary (yet still insufficient) source of income.

Often, it’s the lack of protections and accountability within supply chains that create unfair conditions for workers. If a lot of customers choose to turn away without demanding better safeguards or transparency, the outcome can be factory closures, job losses, or brands shifting production elsewhere without improving conditions.

Closing factories often doesn’t resolve worker exploitation. It erases the visibility of the problem without addressing its root causes. There are moments when a boycott can be an important tool, especially if a brand refuses to acknowledge wrongdoing or take meaningful steps to improve. Withholding your buying in those cases can send a strong signal that unethical practices won’t be tolerated. But if a company is engaging, investigating, and working toward change, abandoning them too quickly can remove both the pressure and the incentive to improve.

The same goes for instances of state-sponsored oppression like Uzbekistan cotton or Uyghur forced labour in China. Clear and outspoken denouncement and avoidance of these practices is a much more powerful driver for change than patiently standing by.

The key is to think strategically about the impact of your actions, always keeping the workers’ wellbeing at the centre.

The goal shouldn’t be to abandon the fashion industry, but to transform it. That means pushing for long-term, systemic reform. This includes fair wages, safe working environments, ethical sourcing and platforms for workers to raise concerns without retaliation. This work isn’t accomplished through silence or disengagement. It requires persistent, vocal and informed advocacy.

Sometimes brands that score in the top 20% in the Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Guide find themselves in the headlines too. This is why it’s important to remember that even brands with strong safeguards can’t afford to be complacent.

There is still much work to be done across the industry. As consumers and advocates, we have a crucial role in pushing for continued progress.

Consumer pressure can lead to meaningful change. Companies are more likely to act when they know their customers are watching. Over the years, advocacy campaigns have led to brands to publish supplier lists, strengthen labour rights policies, and improve supply chain transparency. We can speak out to the brand, share and discuss with our friends and family, or support legislation that sets standards for the protection of workers.

If you’re concerned about the rights of garment workers, the most impactful thing you can do is speak up and use your voice and purchasing power. Encourage brands to investigate violations, engage in remediation and build long-term solutions with their suppliers. And, when brands are doing well, encourage them to not rest on their laurels, but to keep testing and reviewing their procedures.

Whilst personal purchasing decisions matter, lasting change comes from collective action. If you can, use your influence not just to punish companies when they fall short, but to advocate for a more just fashion industry.

Thanks to Baptist World Aid for their research, work in the sector and story. Check out their excellent Ethical Fashion Guide to find out how international brands (and store brands like DJ’s and Myer) rank regarding worker standards to help guide your ethical purchasing.

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References & further reading:

• Gibson, B. (2025, August 22). What NOT to do when your favourite brand is caught in a scandal. Baptist World Aid Australia. https://baptistworldaid.org.au/2025/08/22/what-not-to-do-when-your-favourite-brand-is-caught-in-a-scandal/

• Baptist World Aid Australia. (2024, October 17). Get the latest ethical fashion guide - Baptist World Aid. https://baptistworldaid.org.au/resources/ethical-fashion-guide/

• Baptist World Aid Australia. (2024b, October 17). Speak out. tell brands what you think! https://baptistworldaid.org.au/action/speak-out-to-brands/