Protestors to target Primark opening

Sep 9 2007 By Barry Gregory

THE opening of a major high street fashion store’s first-ever Liverpool branch next week is set to be followed by demonstrations by human rights campaigners.

The new Primark clothing store on Church Street will open its doors on Wednesday September 12, employing more than 900 staff.

The discount retailer has enjoyed huge success in recent years and the opening of its new Liverpool store, in the former Littlewoods department store site, has been heralded as a major step forward for the city’s retail sector.

But human rights protes- ters claim Primark uses sweatshops to manufacture many of its clothes and shoes, and they plan to take direct action against the store in the coming weeks.

Campaigners hope to reduce the fanfare surrounding the new store and make people aware of the alleged mistreatment of workers at the hands of the fashion industry, with a meeting planned in the city centre next weekend.

Primark has become a staple figure on the British high street, increasing its share of the clothing market at the expense of traditional retailers such as Bhs and Gap by selling fashionable goods at affordable prices.

The discount retailer has moved to defend its position amid rising criticism in recent weeks which has claimed that it exploits cheap labour in developing countries in order to offer their now familiar low prices.

In a statement on its website, Primark stated it is conducting independent audits of all its plants in Bangladesh, and said it was “determined that its focus on providing value and quality for customers should not be at the expense of workers in our supply chain”.

It has launched an “urgent” inquiry after a report claimed workers are paid as little as 13p per hour and forced to work excessive shifts and overtime periods at factories producing Primark goods in countries such as Bangladesh.

The firm has been accused, along with Tesco and Asda, of breaching international labour standards set out by Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) to protect the basic rights of supply-chain workers.

It has also been forced to issue a message on its website, asking customers to ignore “malicious rumours” circulating on the internet claiming the new Liverpool store will be offering special opening deals.