What responsibilities do organizations such as the charities in this case have, to keep themselves informed of management practices, staff wages and working conditions in supplier organizations? Are the responsibilities of charities in this respect any different from those of other purchasing organizations (such as private sector clothing retailers)? There can be difficulties in ensuring good communication across supply chains, and these can be compounded when companies source products from suppliers in different and geographically distant countries. Bangladesh has become a favourite source of ready-to-wear clothing for companies in developed countries. Labour is cheap and this is reflected in the price of the products supplied. However, poor management practices may go unnoticed by purchasers, until they are brought to light in adverse circumstances.

In January 2019 it was revealed that t-shirts sold to raise money for Comic Relief’s ‘gender justice’

campaign in the UK were made at a Bangladeshi factory where women were paid 35p an hour, and were required to work up to 16 hours a day. They said they were verbally abused by managers if they failed to meet production targets.