Myanmar was divided into two parts on February 01 after the military overtook the country in a coup and detained the popular leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Since then, several human rights groups have voiced concerns and locals have staged protests every day against the rising military pressure on the streets.

When the locals took to the streets, the majority of people wanted to join these demonstrations and fight for their rights and freedom. However, workers of a company have claimed that they were locked in the factory to prevent them from joining anti-coup protests.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/several-protesters-killed-in-myanmar-capital-in-overnight-protests-370154" hreflang="en">Several protesters killed in Myanmar capital in overnight protests</a>

Employees of GY Sen, who are suppliers of the popular clothing store Primark, have claimed that their supervisors locked them inside the factory to make sure they could not participate in the anti-coup protests taking place in Myanmar's Yangon on February 18.

The reports claim that nearly 1,000 workers were trapped inside the factory who say it took them hours to break free from the confinement.

It has also been alleged that nearly 20 workers were fired from their jobs after they participated in the civil disobedience movement. This movement has called locals refusing to work till the military backs down, which has led to a paralysis of the economy and the military junta, as many key sectors services' have been disrupted.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/myanmar-citizens-in-us-offered-temporary-refuge-from-coup-crackdown-370096" hreflang="en">Myanmar citizens in US offered temporary refuge from coup crackdown</a>

These allegations have been denied by a spokesperson for GY Sen. The supplier has also denied not paying employees on time saying, "we have paid them [for overtime] according to the standard rate under the law."

However, the popular brand Primark has launched an investigation into the matter. The company has also suspended all future orders from the suppliers till the investigation is completed.

"We will work with our supplier and, where required, other trusted third parties. If the factory is found to have breached our code [of conduct], we will work with the supplier and factory to remediate any issues," Primark said in a statement. "We believe it is our responsibility to do all we can to support workers in our supply chain."

Myanmar was divided into two parts on February 01 after the military overtook the country in a coup and detained the popular leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Since then, several human rights groups have voiced concerns and locals have staged protests every day against the rising military pressure on the streets.

Myanmar was divided into two parts on February 01 after the military overtook the country in a coup and detained the popular leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Since then, several human rights groups have voiced concerns and locals have staged protests every day against the rising military pressure on the streets. When the locals took to the streets, the majority of people wanted to join these demonstrations and fight for their rights and freedom. However, workers of a company have claimed that they were locked in the factory to prevent them from joining anti-coup protests. Also read | Several protesters killed in Myanmar capital in overnight protests Employees of GY Sen, who are suppliers of the popular clothing store Primark, have claimed that their supervisors locked them inside the factory to make sure they could not participate in the anti-coup protests taking place in Myanmar's Yangon on February 18. The reports claim that nearly 1,000 workers were trapped inside the factory who say it took them hours to break free from the confinement. It has also been alleged that nearly 20 workers were fired from their jobs after they participated in the civil disobedience movement. This movement has called locals refusing to work till the military backs down, which has led to a paralysis of the economy and the military junta, as many key sectors services' have been disrupted. Also read | Myanmar citizens in US offered temporary refuge from coup crackdown These allegations have been denied by a spokesperson for GY Sen. The supplier has also denied not paying employees on time saying, "we have paid them [for overtime] according to the standard rate under the law." However, the popular brand Primark has launched an investigation into the matter. The company has also suspended all future orders from the suppliers till the investigation is completed. "We will work with our supplier and, where required, other trusted third parties. If the factory is found to have breached our code [of conduct], we will work with the supplier and factory to remediate any issues," Primark said in a statement. "We believe it is our responsibility to do all we can to support workers in our supply chain."

Primark supplier locked workers in factory during Myanmar protests

Retail therapy: Britishers decide 'Primark is a priority' through long queues

Global clothing brands including H&amp;M, Primark and Tesco won a Bangladesh Supreme Court case Sunday, allowing international factory safety monitors to operate in the country which has had a string of industrial disasters.

The top court in the South Asian nation, which became notorious after the 2013 Rana Plaza disaster in which 1,138 people died, ruled that the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety could continue its oversight of clothing factories for one more year.

Bangladesh is the world's second biggest garment maker after China and the country's factory owners had been lobbying for the Accord monitors to leave, arguing that the programme's five-year mandate had expired.

After a lower court backed the factory owners, ordering the monitors to wind up its operations, labour groups warned of the risk to workers' lives if the Accord, which is backed by about 200 mainly European clothing labels, was forced out.

The Accord has played a big role in pushing through safety upgrades since the collapse of the Rana Plaza warren of factories in 2013.

One of the world's worst industrial disasters, the incident put the spotlight on poor safety standards in Bangladesh's $31 billion a year garment industry.

The Supreme Court said the Accord could keep operating for 281 more working days, around 13-14 months after it made a deal with the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) lobbying group, a lawyer said.

The deal has been endorsed by the Bangladesh government and will lead to the establishment of a national safety entity, the Ready-made Garment Sustainability Council which will take over the monitoring.

The BGMEA said the deal would establish the route to self-monitoring by Bangladeshi manufacturers.

Christie Miedema, a spokesperson from the Amsterdam-based Clean Clothes Campaign, said the group was studying the deal to understand its consequences.

But local union leader Babul Akhter said the deal gives wider powers to factory owners and was a threat to worker safety. "It will have bad consequences," he told AFP. &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;

Under intense pressure after the 2013 disaster, leading international brands set up two safety watchdogs to monitor more than 4,500 factories that make clothes for Western stores.

The Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, which represented mainly US brands, has already closed while the Accord had asked for more time to enforce safety measures in the factories under review.

The textile companies fear monitors could start looking into other worker rights issues in an industry where minimum wages start at $95 a month, critics say.

Global clothing brands including H&M, Primark and Tesco won a Bangladesh Supreme Court case Sunday, allowing international factory safety monitors to operate in the country which has had a string of industrial disasters.

Global clothing brands including H&M, Primark and Tesco won a Bangladesh Supreme Court case Sunday, allowing international factory safety monitors to operate in the country which has had a string of industrial disasters. The top court in the South Asian nation, which became notorious after the 2013 Rana Plaza disaster in which 1,138 people died, ruled that the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety could continue its oversight of clothing factories for one more year. Bangladesh is the world's second biggest garment maker after China and the country's factory owners had been lobbying for the Accord monitors to leave, arguing that the programme's five-year mandate had expired. After a lower court backed the factory owners, ordering the monitors to wind up its operations, labour groups warned of the risk to workers' lives if the Accord, which is backed by about 200 mainly European clothing labels, was forced out. The Accord has played a big role in pushing through safety upgrades since the collapse of the Rana Plaza warren of factories in 2013. One of the world's worst industrial disasters, the incident put the spotlight on poor safety standards in Bangladesh's $31 billion a year garment industry. The Supreme Court said the Accord could keep operating for 281 more working days, around 13-14 months after it made a deal with the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) lobbying group, a lawyer said. The deal has been endorsed by the Bangladesh government and will lead to the establishment of a national safety entity, the Ready-made Garment Sustainability Council which will take over the monitoring. The BGMEA said the deal would establish the route to self-monitoring by Bangladeshi manufacturers. Christie Miedema, a spokesperson from the Amsterdam-based Clean Clothes Campaign, said the group was studying the deal to understand its consequences. But local union leader Babul Akhter said the deal gives wider powers to factory owners and was a threat to worker safety. "It will have bad consequences," he told AFP. Under intense pressure after the 2013 disaster, leading international brands set up two safety watchdogs to monitor more than 4,500 factories that make clothes for Western stores. The Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, which represented mainly US brands, has already closed while the Accord had asked for more time to enforce safety measures in the factories under review. The textile companies fear monitors could start looking into other worker rights issues in an industry where minimum wages start at $95 a month, critics say.

Bangladesh factory safety monitors get court extension

Already hamstrung by the battle to compete with online rivals, Britain&#39;s major clothing retailers now risk a hit to sales and profits from the higher costs and plummeting consumer confidence that have followed the vote to leave the European Union. 
 
A month after that vote, clothing sellers are nursing big share price falls and contemplating the cost of the depreciation in the Pound versus their most important currency, the US Dollar. 
 
At the same time, consumer confidence has recorded one of the biggest drops in over two decades. With consumer spending accounting for three quarters of Britain&#39;s gross domestic product any drop would have huge implications for the economy. 
 
While a few retailers with big overseas earnings could benefit from the currency move, such as luxury brand Burberry, online fashion retailer ASOS and discount chain Primark, those that will struggle are likely to be British-focused and with already tight margins. 
 
&quot;It was already a tough market,&quot; Andy Street, managing director of John Lewis, Britain&#39;s biggest department store chain, said earlier this month, while Steve Rowe, CEO of Marks &amp; Spencer, the nation&#39;s biggest clothing retailer, described confidence as &quot;fragile&quot;. 
 
While steps by clothing retailers to protect themselves from volatility in foreign exchange rates through hedging will provide some breathing space on the currency issue, the hit to confidence is the more immediate threat, as Britons typically curtail clothes shopping in hard times. 
 
Market researcher Nielsen polled shoppers after the Brexit vote and found 41 per cent planned to change their spending habits to save on household expenses, with clothing and expensive grocery brands in their sights. 
 
In common with all British retailers, clothing sellers were already grappling with intense competition from online-only players and the cost inflation implications of the government-mandated minimum pay rate, the national living wage, as well as increased business rates. 
 
Official data today showed UK clothing sales were falling even before the referendum. Sales volumes in the three months to June were 5 per cent lower than a year earlier, the worst performance for any calendar quarter in 25 years, and in sharp contrast to a buoyant picture for most other categories of retail. 
 
Now clothing retailers also have to deal with a sharply depreciated Pound.&nbsp;Sterling has taken the brunt of market concern since the Brexit vote on June 23, falling to a 31-year low and trading below $1.28 on July 6 against $1.50 the day before the referendum. 
 
With the bulk of British clothing retailers&#39; goods sourced from Asian suppliers and paid for in Dollars, a weaker Pound has a major impact on their buying costs. 
 
Britain&#39;s biggest clothing retailers, including M&amp;S, Next and John Lewis, are hedged up to 18 months ahead, meaning that if Sterling stays depressed the main impact will not start to be felt until the second half of their 2017-18 financial year. 
 
Sportswear retailer Sports Direct is the notable exception, being unhedged for Sterling-Dollar for its 2016-17 year. Its share price is down 32 per cent since the vote. 
 
Clothing companies would normally be expected to hedge for the second half of 2017-18 and beyond, now and over the next few months.&nbsp;But with foreign currency markets volatile, the treasury departments of firms are reviewing their hedging policies. 
 
They face a dilemma, explained a senior banker with several major British retailers as clients, because as UK interest rates look set to be cut there is a risk Sterling could fall further.&nbsp;&quot;Now might not be the right time to do it, equally waiting might not be the right thing to do,&quot; he said. 
 
That unease was echoed by a person with knowledge of the situation at a FTSE 100 clothing retailer.&nbsp;&quot;You don&rsquo;t want to be making a decision in July to hedge for 18 months time, because nobody knows what&rsquo;s going to happen. You could put yourself in a worse position,&quot; said the person, adding that only the brave would start hedging now. 
 
Faced with higher sourcing costs one solution could be to pass those costs on to consumers through higher prices.&nbsp;However, in an already weak market shoppers will have little appetite for inflation, and in the case of M&amp;S, raising prices would run counter to Rowe&#39;s stated strategy of bringing them down to cure the firm&#39;s perceived uncompetitiveness. 
 
The average price of clothing has fallen by 15 per cent in the last 10 years, according to official UK data.&nbsp;The key for clothing retailers will be their ability to mitigate the cost increases they face. 
 
&quot;There are a number of things that we can do in terms of the sourcing side of things,&quot; said Helen Weir, M&amp;S&#39; chief finance officer, noting the firm imports 1 billion to 1.5 billion Pounds ($1.31-$1.97 billion) worth of goods each year in Dollars. 
 
Options include changing the mix of sourcing countries and further increasing the proportion of direct sourcing from factories, cutting out middlemen.&nbsp;Also there might be scope to re-negotiate better terms with suppliers as Asian currencies have depreciated against the Dollar. 
 
Bankers say more radical options would require a cultural shift at retailers.&nbsp;They could pursue &quot;dual pricing&quot;, where they negotiate part payment for supplies in different currencies from the Dollar, for example using the Chinese Renminbi. 
 
Retailers could also collaborate more on ordering, shipping and warehousing to seek economy of scale savings.&nbsp;But efficiencies might be more difficult to achieve than in previous years. 
 
&quot;Companies have already materially improved their gross margins through better buying and efficiencies on the supply side,&quot; said Ernesto Bisagno, senior analyst at ratings agency Moody&#39;s. 
 
Ultimately the clothing sellers with the biggest margins will be best able to weather the storm.&nbsp;Here, Next, Britain&#39;s most successful clothing retailer of the last decade, is the stand-out stock, with an operating margin for 2015-16 of 20.8 per cent, according to Reuters data. 
 
That dwarfs M&amp;S on 7.4 per cent, which is diluted by half of its business being in the lower-margin food sector, Debenhams on 5.8 per cent (for 2014-15), Sports Direct on 9.4 per cent and Primark on 11.9 per cent (for its most recent quarter). 
 
Led by Simon Wolfson, who was among the leading business supporters of Brexit, Next should be well prepared. With some foresight, he had warned in March that 2016 could be its toughest year since 2008. 
 
(Reuters)

Clothing retailers fear volatility in foreign exchange rates, and Britons typically buy less clothes in hard times

Already hamstrung by the battle to compete with online rivals, Britain's major clothing retailers now risk a hit to sales and profits from the higher costs and plummeting consumer confidence that have followed the vote to leave the European Union. A month after that vote, clothing sellers are nursing big share price falls and contemplating the cost of the depreciation in the Pound versus their most important currency, the US Dollar. At the same time, consumer confidence has recorded one of the biggest drops in over two decades. With consumer spending accounting for three quarters of Britain's gross domestic product any drop would have huge implications for the economy. While a few retailers with big overseas earnings could benefit from the currency move, such as luxury brand Burberry, online fashion retailer ASOS and discount chain Primark, those that will struggle are likely to be British-focused and with already tight margins. "It was already a tough market," Andy Street, managing director of John Lewis, Britain's biggest department store chain, said earlier this month, while Steve Rowe, CEO of Marks & Spencer, the nation's biggest clothing retailer, described confidence as "fragile". While steps by clothing retailers to protect themselves from volatility in foreign exchange rates through hedging will provide some breathing space on the currency issue, the hit to confidence is the more immediate threat, as Britons typically curtail clothes shopping in hard times. Market researcher Nielsen polled shoppers after the Brexit vote and found 41 per cent planned to change their spending habits to save on household expenses, with clothing and expensive grocery brands in their sights. In common with all British retailers, clothing sellers were already grappling with intense competition from online-only players and the cost inflation implications of the government-mandated minimum pay rate, the national living wage, as well as increased business rates. Official data today showed UK clothing sales were falling even before the referendum. Sales volumes in the three months to June were 5 per cent lower than a year earlier, the worst performance for any calendar quarter in 25 years, and in sharp contrast to a buoyant picture for most other categories of retail. Now clothing retailers also have to deal with a sharply depreciated Pound. Sterling has taken the brunt of market concern since the Brexit vote on June 23, falling to a 31-year low and trading below $1.28 on July 6 against $1.50 the day before the referendum. With the bulk of British clothing retailers' goods sourced from Asian suppliers and paid for in Dollars, a weaker Pound has a major impact on their buying costs. Britain's biggest clothing retailers, including M&S, Next and John Lewis, are hedged up to 18 months ahead, meaning that if Sterling stays depressed the main impact will not start to be felt until the second half of their 2017-18 financial year. Sportswear retailer Sports Direct is the notable exception, being unhedged for Sterling-Dollar for its 2016-17 year. Its share price is down 32 per cent since the vote. Clothing companies would normally be expected to hedge for the second half of 2017-18 and beyond, now and over the next few months. But with foreign currency markets volatile, the treasury departments of firms are reviewing their hedging policies. They face a dilemma, explained a senior banker with several major British retailers as clients, because as UK interest rates look set to be cut there is a risk Sterling could fall further. "Now might not be the right time to do it, equally waiting might not be the right thing to do," he said. That unease was echoed by a person with knowledge of the situation at a FTSE 100 clothing retailer. "You don’t want to be making a decision in July to hedge for 18 months time, because nobody knows what’s going to happen. You could put yourself in a worse position," said the person, adding that only the brave would start hedging now. Faced with higher sourcing costs one solution could be to pass those costs on to consumers through higher prices. However, in an already weak market shoppers will have little appetite for inflation, and in the case of M&S, raising prices would run counter to Rowe's stated strategy of bringing them down to cure the firm's perceived uncompetitiveness. The average price of clothing has fallen by 15 per cent in the last 10 years, according to official UK data. The key for clothing retailers will be their ability to mitigate the cost increases they face. "There are a number of things that we can do in terms of the sourcing side of things," said Helen Weir, M&S' chief finance officer, noting the firm imports 1 billion to 1.5 billion Pounds ($1.31-$1.97 billion) worth of goods each year in Dollars. Options include changing the mix of sourcing countries and further increasing the proportion of direct sourcing from factories, cutting out middlemen. Also there might be scope to re-negotiate better terms with suppliers as Asian currencies have depreciated against the Dollar. Bankers say more radical options would require a cultural shift at retailers. They could pursue "dual pricing", where they negotiate part payment for supplies in different currencies from the Dollar, for example using the Chinese Renminbi. Retailers could also collaborate more on ordering, shipping and warehousing to seek economy of scale savings. But efficiencies might be more difficult to achieve than in previous years. "Companies have already materially improved their gross margins through better buying and efficiencies on the supply side," said Ernesto Bisagno, senior analyst at ratings agency Moody's. Ultimately the clothing sellers with the biggest margins will be best able to weather the storm. Here, Next, Britain's most successful clothing retailer of the last decade, is the stand-out stock, with an operating margin for 2015-16 of 20.8 per cent, according to Reuters data. That dwarfs M&S on 7.4 per cent, which is diluted by half of its business being in the lower-margin food sector, Debenhams on 5.8 per cent (for 2014-15), Sports Direct on 9.4 per cent and Primark on 11.9 per cent (for its most recent quarter). Led by Simon Wolfson, who was among the leading business supporters of Brexit, Next should be well prepared. With some foresight, he had warned in March that 2016 could be its toughest year since 2008. (Reuters)

British clothing retailers face Brexit double whammy

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