If you're going near any branches of Topshop today, chances are you'll find they're a bit busier than usual. No - they haven't slashed the cost of Kate Moss range, and there's no magic money off coupon doing the rounds: the stores are being picketed by War on Want, a group opposed to poverty and exploitation.
This isn't the first time that Arcadia, the umbrella organisation that owns Topshop run by Philip Green, has come under fire over human rights. In fact, today's activity marks the one-year anniversary of a report also brought to public attention by War on Want, which claimed that Bangladeshi workers employed by the chain were paid just 5p an hour for an 80-hour week. A researcher working on behalf of War on Want said today that 'I have kept in touch with workers from the Bangladeshi factories. Their pay and conditions have not improved'.
Philip Green, whose clothing empire makes him worth £5 billion has so far refused to comment. Back in August, he denied similar allegations about Arcadia, but today's news would imply that little or nothing has been done to improve workers' conditions.
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