Fashion Revolution: When Sustainability Doesn’t Include Wages, It’s Not Ethical
Fashion has long relied on smoke and mirrors: glossy campaigns, vague buzzwords, and performative hashtags. But real change? That comes from the stuff most people never see — supply chains, wage systems, fibre choices, product design, and end-of-life planning.
Fashion Revolution Week 22nd - 27th April is a global campaign to demand transparency and accountability from the industry. It began after the Rana Plaza factory collapse in 2013, where 1,134 garment workers died in Bangladesh when a building full of fashion brands' production lines collapsed. It was preventable. But no one took responsibility until the world demanded it.
Since then, millions of people have asked brands one simple question: Who made my clothes?
This year, we’re asking a follow-up: Can sustainability targets — when pushed down the supply chain without support — actually harm the very people making our clothes?
At Underwear for Humanity, we answer that question — and go further
We don’t just know who makes our products. We choose our suppliers carefully and we work with them respectfully. Our garments are made in ethically certified factories in China that pay above the living wage, operate with transparency, and meet high environmental and social standards.
We believe transparency isn’t just about naming factories on a website. It’s about committing to long-term relationships, paying fairly, auditing for real, and making sure workers are protected.
We’re proud of how our products are made, and proud to know the people behind them.
Power dynamics in fashion: who really controls the change?
One thing that’s rarely discussed during Fashion Revolution Week is this: brands set the rules, but it’s suppliers who carry the burden.
Too often, brands from the global north (including Australia) place the responsibility for meeting sustainability targets on their suppliers — without providing the time, financial support, or transparency required to make those changes realistic or fair.
We’ve heard directly from manufacturers: they are being asked to absorb the cost of “going sustainable,” while still being pressured to meet low price points and fast turnaround times. That’s not ethical. It’s extractive.
And when suppliers are squeezed like that, it has direct consequences for the people who work there — especially when it comes to wages and working conditions.
If we want a fair fashion industry, we have to address the imbalance of power. Brands must:
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Pay fair prices that reflect the true cost of ethical production
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Give suppliers the space and resources to innovate responsibly
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Commit to long-term partnerships, not one-season transactions
True sustainability is collaborative. It requires listening to the people who make the clothes — and treating them as equal partners in the process.
It's not just about people — it's about systems
Fashion needs structural change.
Transparency and ethics are essential foundations for a fair and sustainable fashion industry.
We believe in:
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Real auditing
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Worker voice and long-term relationships with factories
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Paying living wages and understanding true cost of labour
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Building a brand that stands for more than just what it sells
The future of fashion depends on systems that prioritise people and planet over profit.
What you can do during Fashion Revolution Week
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Ask brands hard questions: Who made this? What were they paid? Are they safe? Hint - Shein no. cheap throw away clothes are driven by profit, not care for planet or people.
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Support businesses taking responsibility: Not just for marketing, but for materials, labour, and working conditions
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Push for legislation that protects garment workers
And if you're wearing our undies? Know that someone was paid fairly to make them. And we know their name.
Underwear for Humanity is a certified B Corp committed to ethical supply chains, living wages and full transparency across our manufacturing.
