ASOS Modern Slavery event in Mauritius

ASOS joins forces with British High Commission to host modern slavery event in Mauritius. Multi-stakeholder discussion aims to agree common framework for improving worker protection in Mauritius and beyond

Mauritius, February 22nd, 2018: ASOS, one of the world’s leading destinations for fashion-loving 20-somethings, is today hosting an event with the British High Commission in Mauritius that brings together local and international stakeholders to discuss the challenges in managing labour migration and agree a common framework for improving worker protection in Mauritius and beyond.

Organised as part of ASOS’ modern slavery commitments and coinciding with ongoing discussions between the Mauritian and Bangladeshi governments on labour migration and workers’ rights, the event takes place in Port Louis, Mauritius and includes presentations and talks from the Mauritian and Bangladeshi governments, the International Labour Organisation, the IndustriALL Union, the Ethical Trading Initiative and Anti-Slavery International. Also attending the event are executives from fashion brands manufacturing on the island including, Adidas, zLabels, Puma, Woolworths and Whistles, among others.

Last year ASOS released its first Modern Slavery Statement in line with UK legislation, in which it demonstrated its commitment to eradicating modern slavery from its supply chain. Following reviews of all 11 factories in ASOS’ Mauritian supply chain with labour rights organisation Verité, Mauritius was highlighted in the statement as an area of risk with evidence of systemic labour violations including debt bondage linked to the recruitment of migrant workers.

Simon Platts, Sourcing Director, ASOS, said, “We’re grateful for the support of the British High Commission, the Mauritian and Bangladeshi governments and the many other speakers and guests attending today’s event. The hope is that by sharing experience and expertise, we can encourage efforts to prevent exploitation during recruitment, and engage governments to effectively enforce legislation to protect migrant workers. Ultimately we believe this collective approach will help to protect the rights of workers in Mauritius, particularly those who are most vulnerable.”

The British High Commission is supporting this event as part of the UK’s agenda to tackle Modern Slavery, a top foreign policy priority for Prime Minister Theresa May. British High Commissioner Keith Allan, who’s also speaking at the event, commented, “The UK Government is committed to the eradication of all forms of forced labour and is supportive of initiatives to ensure that migrant workers working in factories and plants are not in situations of debt bondage.”

ASOS’ Modern Slavery Statement and the commitments contained within form a key component of ASOS’ Ethical Trade Strategy, which has been designed to improve the brand’s business practices to help tackle human rights impacts in its global supply chain and empower workers to realise and understand their fundamental rights.

Last October, ASOS became the first e-commerce brand to sign a Global Framework Agreement with IndustriALL, the world’s largest sectorial trade union organization representing 50 million workers, to strengthen the implementation of international labour standards. And, in late March, ASOS will be co-hosting an event at the House of Lords with Baroness Lola Young, Co-Chair All Party Parliamentary Group on Ethics and Sustainability in Fashion and Anti-Slavery International to identify and address shared risks in the apparel sector for its supplier base.

About ASOS

ASOS is a global fashion destination for 20-somethings. We sell cutting-edge fashion and offer a wide variety of fashion-related content, making ASOS.com the hub of a thriving fashion community. We sell over 85,000 branded and own-label products through localised mobile and web experiences, delivering from our fulfilment centres in the UK, US and Europe to almost every country in the world. We tailor the mix of own-label, global and local brands sold through each of our eight local language websites: UK, US, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Australia and Russia. ASOS’s websites attracted 174 million visits during December 2017 (December 2016: 139 million) and as at 31 December 2017 it had 16.0 million active customers1 (31 December 2016: 13.4 million), of which 5.4 million were located in the UK and 10.6 million were located in our international territories (31 December 2016: 4.9 million in the UK and 8.5 million internationally).

¹Defined as having shopped in the last twelve months as at 31 December 2017

About ASOS’s Ethical Trade programme