Engage Athletic
Good. Shows the people who make its products are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources
Melbourne maker of custom teamwear and sportswear.
Engage Athletic makes its custom sportswear and teamwear in its own factories in Australia, and carries the Australian Made label.
Also worth knowing
Ethical Clothing Australia checks that every worker in its Australian supply chain is paid award wages and entitlements.
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Why it's graded Good
- Met: Meets all 6 Good requirements.
- Met: No red flags.
| Star | Awarded for | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Pays above a living wage | Not earned | |
| Gives workers a real voice | Not earned | |
| Open supply chain | Not earned | |
| Finds and fixes problems, or invests in communities | Not earned |
3 stars for the first way it goes above and beyond, and one more for each further way, up to 6. About stars
Good requirements 6 of 6
- Met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: award wages independently checked (Ethical Clothing Australia)
- Met: Respects worker rights
- Met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that listMakes its products in its own factories
- Met: High-risk raw materials (cotton) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeOnly in a few products: cotton
Red flags 0
None found.
Accreditations 2
- Ethical Clothing AustraliaCounts as proof of a living wage for products made in Australia, because it checks workers get the legal pay rates for their job, and in Australia those are about a living wage.
- Australian MadeCounts as made in Australia for the final stage. For Good, the brand also needs to show where its materials and parts are made.
Estimates for its products
Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Engage Athletic's evidence and, where it has product lines, that line's countries. They're estimates: we don't know which factory made any single item.
Activewear, T-shirts, Hoodies & sweatshirts, Shorts, Jackets & coats: Good, the same as Engage Athletic overall, because nothing we know differs between them.
- A product made with cotton: On Track
Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.
Where it's made
From Engage Athletic's own disclosure: it makes its products in its own factories.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
Evidence
What we found
- Uses cotton in only a few products, so the raw-material check doesn't hold it back for Good. It doesn't show where its cotton comes from. The "Open supply chain" star needs all of it traced, certified or upcycled.
- Owns or runs its own production
Research notes Engage Athletic designs, prints, cuts and sews its garments at its own factory in Melbourne, and Ethical Clothing Australia's current directory lists it as accredited, saying 100% of its products are made in Australia. ECA accreditation checks that the workers making its garments in Australia get award wages and entitlements. Performance fabrics are sourced from overseas, and the company does not publish anything on the conditions of the workers who make those fabrics.
Sources and actions
Sources 6
Show all 6 sources
- Ethical Clothing Australia: Engage Athletic · search the archive · Listed as an accredited brand in ECA's current directory (October 2026); custom sportswear since 2004; 100% of products made in Australia.
- Ethical Clothing Australia brand sitemap · search the archive · Engage Athletic is among the 57 currently listed accredited brands (updated 10 October 2026).
- Australian Made: Engage Athletic case study (2019) · search the archive · Founded in 2004 by Paul McAlister, co-owned with Jenna McAlister; manufactures 100% in-house in Melbourne; partner of Skate Australia since 2009.
- Australian Made: Engage Athletic licensee · search the archive · Australian Made licensee for custom-made sportswear, with a factory in Thomastown and a warehouse in Broadmeadows, Victoria.
Published by Engage Athletic or its owner
- Engage Athletic: About us · search the archive · Designed and made at its own Melbourne facility (design, printing, cutting, sewing in-house); ECA accredited; performance fabrics from overseas.
- Engage Athletic: Express Range · search the archive · In-stock teamwear range described as Australian-made.
Company details
- Headquarters
- Australia
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Engage Athletic ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/engage-athletic, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Good means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Engage Athletic.