Child labour cases once again found in Shein’s supply chain
Fast-fashion giant Shein found two cases of child labour in its supply chain last year, the company has told MPs.
Shein’s general counsel for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Yinan Zhu, disclosed the cases in a letter to MPs, according to The Guardian.
One of the incidents involved a child aged 11 years and eight months, Zhu said.
“Nonetheless, and irrespective of these details, we took the issue extremely seriously, including designating the incident as child labour and immediately terminating our relationship with the supplier,” the letter said.
“Shein also ensured the contract manufacturers strengthened their processes for screening new hires, such as checking and maintaining records of all employees’ IDs,” the company said.
A report from the advocacy group Public Eye in 2021 first dug into conditions in Shein’s supply chain, finding that workers at six Shein suppliers were subject to 75 hour weeks in factories with blocked corridors and stairways.
In response Shein said it had built an in-house team to monitor supply-chain partners. Shein conducted about 4,300 audits covering about 317,000 workers in 2024, up from 4,000 audits covering 285,000 workers in 2023, according to the letter.
These cases are likely to become another headache in Shein’s bid to list on London’s stock exchange.
Other issues include supposed intellectual property infringements and concerns about governance and transparency, as well as the threat to its business model posed by US President Donald Trump.
Shein had been targeting a $50bn IPO, but reports have suggested the fast-fashion giant is under investor pressure to slash its valuation.
CityAM has contacted Shein for comment.