Kylie and Kendall Jenner accused of withholding Bangladesh workers' pay

By
Web Desk

July 07, 2020

Being two of the wealthiest public figures, Kylie and Kendall Jenner were called out for not paying their workers

Kendall and Kylie Jenner are no strangers to controversy and it seems the two sisters have found themselves ensnared in yet another.

According to reports by Diet Prada and Remake, the two sisters had allegedly been withholding pay from their factory workers in Bangladesh.

Non-profit organization Remake named Global Brands Groups as the owner and manufacturer of the Kendall + Kylie clothing line. Remake claimed that because of the changes incurred following the pandemic, "factories are facing a severe liquidity crunch, with the women who make our clothes placed in the most vulnerable situation. No longer receiving pay, despite having already done the work, these women are quite literally at risk of starving to death.”

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/ Celebrities have joined the #PayUp group chat. (cc @kyliejenner, @kendalljenner, @diddy, @iamcardib) ⠀ In this pandemic, we do not need feel-good philanthropy from Kendall and Kylie Jenner, P. Diddy, and Cardi B. What we need, instead, is good business practices !!! ⠀ Kendall + Kylie, is owned by Global Brands Group, who refused to pay its garment suppliers for orders produced in February and March following a drop in sales caused by the coronavirus pandemic. “Given the unpredictability of the situation, our retail partners have cancelled orders, and existing inventory and product in production may have no sell-through. Consequently, we have no choice but to make the difficult decision to cancel all S/S 2020 orders from all suppliers (without liability),” wrote Rick Darling, CEO of Global Brands Group in a letter dated March 21, 2020. ⠀ However, the fact of the matter is that Global Brands Group does have a choice — it’s just choosing not to implement it. ⠀ Kylie and Kendall aren’t the only celebrity culprits allowed to distance themselves from this devastating truth. Also owned by Global Brands Group? ⠀ P. Diddy’s Sean Jean line. The irony here is difficult to overlook. Recently, P.Diddy launched #OurFairShare, a platform to help minority entrepreneurs access funds in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is admirable. ⠀ But we talked to an entrepreneur in Bangladesh, Mostafiz Uddin, of Denim Experts, who runs a sustainable denim factory. Global Brands Group owes him hundreds of thousands of dollars for products his workers made + shipped in February. ⠀ In April, he pleaded w/ Global Brands Group, “Here my workers are hungry, they are being agitated, they are very angry. I have promised them to pay wages. So please please make my payment.” We would hope that P.Diddy, who cares about #COVID19’s disproportionate impact on Black + Brown people, would ensure that his line does the same. Seems only fair.

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Being two of the wealthiest public figures around the globe, several people attacked the sisters for not paying their workers. However, the allegations were denied by the Kendall + Kylie Jennerteam on their Instagram.

“The Kendall + Kylie brand is owned by Canada Inc. The brand does not produce in Bangladesh. So [these allegations are] not accurate,” said Kylie’s rep in a statement issued to Teen Vogue last month.

The rep also claimed that Remake is also in the process of taking down the posts against the brand.

On the other hand, the non-profit states that they were threatened with legal action by the brand’s team, adding that they will maintain their stance against the sisters until they provide proof of them paying their garment workers.

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/ Remake has always believed in providing a platform to advocate for vulnerable garment makers, who most often are Black and Brown women. ⠀ We launched our #PayUp campaign to hold fashion brands accountable during COVID-19 and to make sure that they pay factories for produced orders -- without this payment, many of the women who make our clothes face homelessness and starvation. ⠀ On June 11, we shared with you that Global Brands Group (affiliated to KENDALL + KYLIE on their website up until TODAY), had refused to pay garment workers for orders produced in February + March following a drop in sales caused by the coronavirus pandemic. ⠀ ⠀ One day later, the KENDALL + KYLIE brand Instagram account shared their intent, to “better our industry and better each other” which was ironic given the lack of response or commitment to #PayUp. ⠀ Over the last week, others have amplified Kendall and Kylie’s lack of action (@diet_prada). As many look up to the sisters and brand, we expect for them to lead by example and stand behind their words that they support women. ⠀ Today, we received word from a KENDALL + KYLIE representative that they do not have “current” orders with Global Brands Group and will pursue legal action if we didn’t remove our posts and apologize. ⠀ We ask: do KENDALL + KYLIE know who makes their label? And if the women have been paid during the crisis? ⠀ Until we receive clear answers from the team that KENDALL + KYLIE have proof they paid garment makers, we will not back down. ⠀ ⠀ If KENDALL + KYLIE really support women then why threaten legal action against a non-profit for women BY women and disable comments? ⠀ We invite them to dialogue w/ us to learn more about the women who bring their label to life. ⠀ — ⠀ Help us hold them accountable: ⠀ ️COMMENT on @kendallandkylie post + EMAIL [email protected] asking for answers ⠀ SIGN our @changedotorg petition ( in bio) to demand brands #PayUP ⠀ ️ To KENDALL + KYLIE’s retail partners (@amazon, @amazonfashion, @ashleystewart, @asos, @bloomingdales, @lebscom, @macys, @neimanmarcus, @nordstrom, @revolve, @saks, @shopbop) why do you carry a brand that is not transparent + supportive of women?

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