United States

The Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) has made an addition to its Higg sustainability index aimed at helping textile and apparel companies assess the environmental impact of their materials. The new Materials Sustainability Index (MSI) contributor will help provide a “common lens” for assessing the impact that various materials have on the climate, land use, water, and other environmental factors. The SAC hopes the new addition will help companies make more informed decisions about sourcing. (Fibre2Fashion)
 
The U.S. Department of Labor says it is investigating reports of low-wage garment workers in Los Angeles being driven to illicit check cashing schemes in order to cash in their paychecks. Investigators say that they have received many reports from workers that their bosses had been directing them to specific check cashers to collect their pay, allegedly because the workers are not being paid their full wages. Local industry leaders say that immense economic pressure from other countries like Vietnam and Bangladesh often leave them with insufficient funds to cover all of their employees’ wages. (Los Angeles Times)