According to a report from the Workers Rights Consortium (WRC), Gildan Activewear purchases clothes from factories in Haiti, where workers are paid below the country’s minimum wage. This firm supplies apparel to the University of Toronto. The WRC is a group that monitors factories making college-branded clothing. The consortium represents nearly 200 universities. The report alleges cases in which workers are being paid so little that they cannot afford food, and are forced to take loans in order to feed their families. U of T is investigating in response to these allegations. Michael Kurts, media spokesman for U of T, said, “If we do not receive a response that’s acceptable to the WRC, the university will determine what further action is required, up to and including ceasing to do business with those companies or any company to whom they provide product.” Further dialogue between Gildan and the WRC is expected in the coming weeks.
With files from The Toronto Star
