Kardashians Refute Sweatshop Allegations: 'Unfair' and 'Libelous'
The Kardashian family is fighting back allegations from Star magazine that their shoe brand manufactures products in sweatshop-like conditions.
A Kardashian representative quickly responded to the recent allegations in a statement to HLN on Thursday:
“They take this situation very seriously and have been assured by all of their manufacturers that the factories are policed regularly and there is no truth to these allegations. That said, we are continuing to investigate the matter and if there is any evidence of an illegal operation then they will cease work with that manufacturer immediately.”
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China Labor Watch, a nonprofit organization against sweatshops, investigated Bebe, the apparel franchise the Kardashians used in the summer of 2010 to manufacture handbags and jewelry from their line.
Investigators posed undercover as factory workers and found that staff had to iron 1,600 t-shirts a day, or between 270 and 400 pieces of clothing per worker.
According to China Labor Watch, employees routinely worked 12 hours a day, six days a week, for $1.75 per hour. The organization released the findings of their probe in “Investigation of China’s Clothing and Apparel Industry: Excessive Overtime, Student Workers and Exploitative Wage Systems.”
The sweatshop allegations about the Kardashian products are not for their clothing line sold at Sears.
Kris Jenner, the mother of the reality stars, told TMZ, the Star report is "unfair" and "libelous" and her family is prepared to take legal action any damages to the Kardashian reputation.
