The Italian Competition Authority has launchedinvestigations into subsidiaries of luxury fashion companies Armaniand Dior over the alleged exploitation of workers in their supplychains, it announced on Wednesday.
According to the authority, the companies have, in some cases, soldproducts from workshops where workers were underpaid, subjected tolong working hours, and employed in violation of safety regulations.
On Tuesday, the companies' business premises in Italy were searched,the authority said in a press release published on Wednesday.
"In both cases, the companies may have issued untrue statements abouttheir ethics and social responsibility, in particular with regard toworking conditions and compliance with the law by their suppliers,"the statement said.
The investigation will now examine whether the companies haveresorted to illegal labour practices in the manufacture and sale oftheir high-priced goods, it said.
The working conditions in the contracted companies stand in starkcontrast to the high production standards praised by Armani and Diorin their advertising. According to the authority, this practiceviolates Italian consumer protection law.
According to media reports, an investigation by the Milan publicprosecutor's office had previously found that workshops in Italy thatmanufacture products for Armani and Dior exploit labour to producehigh-quality products at a fraction of the retail price.
Along with an Armani subsidiary, a branch of the French luxury goodsgroup LVMH was placed under judicial supervision. — dpa
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