Shein, a fast-growing Foreign company, claims to have found two instances of child labor in its supply chain last year as it tightens its surveillance of the clothing manufacturers.
The company claims that it briefly sat on orders from the manufacturers involved and did not go back to business with them until they had made stronger efforts to address the problem.
The revelation in Shein’s 2023 sustainability report comes as it is understood to be planning to sell shares on the stock market.
The company’s offer chain’s workers have been criticized for the working conditions there.
According to Shein,” Both circumstances were resolved quickly, with restoration steps including terminating contracts with young employees, ensuring the settlement of any remarkable wages, organizing health checkups, and facilitating relocation to parents/legal guardians as needed.”
” Following appropriate cleanup, the contract companies were permitted to resume company”.
Shein claims its provider plans have now been strengthened. Any child labor or forced labor violations have now become a cause of instant dismissal of contracts under the new regulations.
It occurs as the business prepares for a possible investment business sale.
The BBC understands that Shein filed initial documents for a London listing earlier this year.
In June, Marco Rubio, a top Republican on the US Senate Intelligence Committee, and an ally of Donald Trump, wrote to then-UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt warning him about “grave morality concerns” and Shein’s “deep relationships to the People’s Republic of China”.
” Slave workers, sweat shops, and business methods are the dirty tricks behind Shein’s achievement”, Mr Rubio wrote in his letter to Mr Hunt.
A Shein director for the company at the time stated:” Shein has a zero-tolerance scheme for forced labor and we are committed to respecting human right. We require our agreement manufacturers to just cause cotton from approved regions and we take transparency really throughout our entire supply chain.
That was just weeks after a report released by Swiss advocacy group Public Eye said excessive overtime was still common for many workers in Shein’s supply chain.
Shein responded to the report by telling the BBC that it was “working hard” to address the issues that Public Eye raised and that it had made” significant improvement” in improving situations.