The Canadian Fair Trade Network (CFTN), a non-profit organization that works with civil society and industry stakeholders to advance awareness and support for fair trade in Canada, has teamed up with Rethink Canada on a series of clothing labels highlighting the devastating conditions that persist for many workers in garment factories around the world.
The powerful ad campaign, “The Label Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story,” depicts clothing tags on a suit jacket, sweater and hoodie that reveal much more than the size and fabric mix of the garments (click to enlarge images).
 | “100% cotton. Made in Bangladesh by Joya who left school at the age of twelve to help support her two brothers and newly widowed mother. Her father was killed when a fire ripped through the cotton factory where he works. She now works in the building across the street from the burned down factory. A constant reminder of the risk she takes every day. The label doesn’t tell the whole story.” |
“100% cotton. Made in Sierra Leone by Tejan. The first few times he coughed up blood he hid it from his family. They couldn’t afford medical treatment and he couldn’t risk losing his long-time job at the cotton plantation. When he fell into a seizure one day it could no longer be ignored. The diagnosis was pesticide poisoning. The lack of proper protective clothing has left him with leukemia at the age of 34. He has two daughters. One of them starts work at the factory next year. The label doesn’t tell the whole story.” |  |
 | “100% cotton. Made in Cambodia by Behnly, nine years old. He gets up at 5:00 am every morning to make his way to the garment factory where he works. It will be dark when he arrives and dark when he leaves. He dresses lightly because the temperature in the room he works reaches 30 degrees. The dust in the room fills his nose and mouth. He will make less than a dollar, for a day spent slowly suffocating. A mask would cost the company ten cents. The label doesn’t tell the whole story.” |
Each ad includes the message: “It’s time for change. Buying fairtrade ensures workers are being compensated fairly and not exposed to unsafe working conditions.”
This is just the latest effort aimed at shining a light on the ugly truth behind the majority of global fashion production. In January, Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten aired a five-part, online reality series, “Sweatshop: Dead Cheap Fashion,” which opened the eyes of three naïve fashionistas by sending them to Cambodia to work with and interview people that work in the type of facility that produces clothes for some of their favorite brands. The three step fully into the life of the average textile worker, sleeping on concrete, living on $3 a day, sewing for eight hours a day, and learning about human rights violations that pervade the industry.