Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 12 sources
Soap, body wash, deodorant and hair care brand owned by Unilever.
Dove's supply chain was linked to child labour in 2016, which it has only partly acted on, and it has proven a living wage for only part of its supply chain.
Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Dove? Send a right of reply.
Compare Dove with another brand
Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: clear breaches of labour conditions and forced or child labour. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record: the most serious problem on its record (child labour link, last recorded in 2016) was a link through a supplier, which the company has only partly acted on.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
- Checks its own supply chain. Dove looks for problems in its own supply chain and publishes what it finds. It found forced labour in 2025 and is fixing it, so it doesn't count against the grade. Other problems on its record count against the grade: a child labour link in 2016 and a abuse of workers link in 2020. They're listed below under Confirmed issues.
Good requirements 1 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: working towards one (proven for only part of its supply chain)
- Not met: Respects worker rightsA confirmed problem counts against it: abuse of workers link, last recorded in 2020
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Not met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Met: Uses only synthetic mica or none, or traces natural mica to independently checked mines, and traces or certifies other high-risk ingredients (palm oil) where they're a major part of its rangeAlso traces or certifies: palm oil
Red flags 2
- Red flag: Clear breaches of labour conditions
- Red flag: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
Dove names some of the countries it makes in: Australia. The rest is shown as where beauty and personal care products are usually made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| United StatesUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Below a living wage | Low |
| FranceUsual for the industry | Regular violations | About a living wage | Low |
| ChinaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| ThailandUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| ItalyUsual for the industry | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| South KoreaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Close to a living wage | Low |
| GermanyUsual for the industry | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| JapanUsual for the industry | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| United KingdomUsual for the industry | Regular violations | Close to a living wage | Low |
| SpainUsual for the industry | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| IndonesiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
Evidence
What we found
- Passes the raw-material check for beauty and personal care products: no natural mica is recorded in its products, and traces or certifies its palm oil.
- Makes part of its range in its own factories
- Modern slavery statement
- Public plan to pay a living wage within 5 years, or with measurable steps due within 5 years
- Proves a living wage for part of its supply chain only
- Traces or certifies most but not all of its palm oil. That doesn't count against it for Good, but the "Open supply chain" star needs all of it traced, certified or upcycled.
Research notes Unilever makes Dove liquids and aerosols for Australia and New Zealand at its own North Rocks factory in Sydney, but doesn't say where other Dove products sold here, such as beauty bars, are made. Palm-based soap and cleansers are central to Dove: Unilever traces 99% of its palm oil to the mill and bought 71% through physically certified RSPO supply chains (2023), yet its palm supply has been linked to child labour and abuse on Indonesian and Malaysian plantations several times. Unilever has paid its own staff a living wage since 2020 and requires suppliers to pay one by 2030, with half of procurement spend under signed promises due by 2026, but KnowTheChain (2026) found it discloses no remedy outcomes for workers.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | Unilever Australia Group Pty Ltd lodges modern slavery statements; its 2025 statement covers over 643 Australian suppliers and reports no non-compliance found in Australia. View |
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | Unilever PLC lodges modern slavery statements on the UK registry (2025 and 2026 statements). View |
| KnowTheChain | Listed | Unilever scored 47/100 and ranked 3rd of 45 in the 2026 KnowTheChain Food & Beverage benchmark; KnowTheChain found two forced labour allegations in its supply chains and no disclosed remedy outcomes for workers. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Problem found | Named among buyers linked to palm plantations with abuse of women workers (Associated Press, 2020) and to Sabah plantations with pay below the minimum wage (Migran Berdaulat, 2025); Unilever responded to both. View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor's 2024 list includes palm fruit and the oleochemicals made from it from Indonesia and Malaysia (child and forced labour); Dove's soap bars are made with palm-derived ingredients. View |
| US forced-labour import bans (UFLPA Entity List, CBP Withhold Release Orders) | Not listed | Neither Unilever nor any named supplier is on the UFLPA Entity List (October 2026 edition). View |
Confirmed issues 3
Only confirmed problems are listed, and old ones drop off after 10 to 15 years. A problem the company has fully put right no longer counts against it, and nor does one it finds and is fixing itself. How problems are counted
| Last recorded | What happened | Made amends? |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Link through a supplierUnilever's own supplier audits in 2025 found workers had been charged recruitment fees, with EUR 54,634 agreed to be repaid to 952 workers, including at a North American labour agency (Unilever Australia Modern Slavery Statement, 2025). Source · search the archiveFound and being fixed by the company Not counted against the grade while the company is actively fixing it, because it found and published it itself. | PartlySuppliers agreed to repay EUR 54,634 in recruitment fees to 952 workers; a follow-up audit in April 2025 confirmed one North American agency case was remediated. |
| 2020 | Link through a supplierAn Associated Press investigation (2020) found physical and sexual abuse of women workers and exposure to harmful chemicals on palm oil plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia, and linked palm oil from them to the supply chains of Unilever and other beauty groups (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2020). Source · search the archive | PartlyUnilever responded to the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre and traces 99% of its palm oil to the mill, but reports no remedy for the workers. |
| 2016 | Link through a supplierAmnesty International (2016) found children aged 8 to 14 doing hazardous work, women threatened with pay deductions to work longer hours and pay below the minimum wage on Indonesian plantations of Wilmar and its suppliers, and traced their palm oil to Unilever among nine buyers (Amnesty International, 2016). Source · archived copy | PartlyUnilever confirmed buying Wilmar palm oil in Indonesia; it now traces 99% of its palm oil to the mill and buys from fewer than 500 mills, but reports no remedy for these workers. |
Unconfirmed reports
Credible reports that haven't been confirmed by a regulator, completed investigation or the company. They're shown for your information and don't affect the grade.
- A Koalisi Buruh Migran Berdaulat report (2025) on three Sabah palm plantations said over half of 26 workers interviewed earned below the legal minimum wage and weren't paid overtime, and that their palm oil likely reaches Unilever among other buyers; Unilever responded (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2025). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 12
Show all 12 sources
- 2026 KnowTheChain Food & Beverage Benchmark: Unilever scorecard · search the archive · 47/100, 3rd of 45; two forced labour allegations in its supply chains; no disclosure of engagement with affected stakeholders or remedy outcomes; uncertainty over fees paid by workers at suppliers in Malaysia and Thailand
- Palm Oil: Global brands profiting from child and forced labour (Amnesty International, 2016) · archived copy · Child labour, forced labour indicators, below-minimum pay and paraquat injuries on plantations of Wilmar subsidiaries and suppliers in Indonesia; palm oil traced to nine buyers including Unilever, Procter & Gamble and Colgate-Palmolive
- AP investigation reveals women face dangerous working conditions, widespread abuse & rape in palm oil supply chains of global cosmetics brands (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre) · search the archive · AP found abuse of women workers and harmful chemicals on Indonesian and Malaysian palm plantations whose palm oil allegedly reaches Unilever and other beauty groups; Unilever responded
- Malaysia: Indonesian palm oil workers endure poor conditions incl. below living wages, wage theft (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 2025) · search the archive · Migran Berdaulat report on three Sabah plantations (26 workers): over half below minimum wage and unpaid overtime; palm oil likely reaches Unilever and others; Unilever responded
- Visit to local manufacturer - Unilever (Alex Hawke MP) · search the archive · Over 70% of Unilever products sold in Australia are made domestically (undated)
- CGF Forest Positive Coalition KPI Reporting and Performance Profile: Unilever 2024 · search the archive · 2023 data: 99% of palm oil traceable to mill and 98.7% to plantation; 71.46% physically certified (RSPO Mass Balance or Segregated) plus 14.16% smallholder credits; certified derivatives and fractions 90.85% Mass Balance
- WWF Palm Oil Buyers Scorecard 2024: Unilever PLC · search the archive · 778,419 tonnes in 2024, including 437,820 tonnes of derivatives; traceable to mill and plantation; score 19.14 of 24
- Dove Beauty Bar Soap Original (Woolworths) · search the archive · Ingredients include sodium palmate, sodium palm kernelate and sodium palm kernoyl isethionate; no mica
Published by Dove or its owner
- Unilever Australia Modern Slavery Statement 2025 · search the archive · Unilever Australia Group Pty Ltd, year to 31 December 2025: manufacturing in North Rocks, Minto and Tatura; over 643 Australian suppliers; no non-compliance found in Australia; globally EUR 54,634 in recruitment fees agreed to be repaid to 952 workers after 2025 audits
- Operator - Day Shift - North Rocks (Unilever Careers) · search the archive · Unilever's North Rocks site makes Home & Personal Care products, including Rexona, Impulse, Omo, Surf, Dove and TRESemmé, for Australia and New Zealand, with liquids and aerosols factories
- Palm oil (Unilever) · search the archive · 95.7% of palm oil order volumes deforestation-free in 2024; fewer than 500 mills
- Living wage: key lessons from a decade of progress (Unilever, 2025) · search the archive · Everyone working directly for Unilever paid a living wage since 2020, accredited by Fair Wage Network in 2021; suppliers required to pay a living wage by 2030; target of 50% of procurement spend with Living Wage Promise signatories by 2026
Company details
- Owned by
- Unilever
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Dove ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/dove, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Other soap, bath and body brands
Nothing we've rated in soap, bath and body is better than Lacks transparency yet.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Dove.