Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 24 October 2026 · 10 sources
Italian footwear company known for breathable perforated soles.
Geox can't show that the workers who make its products in Vietnam and India earn a living wage, which workers there are very unlikely to.
Better-graded footwear
Graded higher than Geox, selling the same kinds of things. Second-hand first.
Second-hand and refurbished goods create no new factory work, so they're Good by rule and come first.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It doesn't show that workers are paid a living wage, and isn't certified as working towards one. On Track needs at least one of these.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- 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.
Good requirements 2 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsJudged on where its products are made: worker rights are poorly protected in China, Vietnam and India.
- 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
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: High-risk raw materials (leather) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: leather
Red flags 1
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
Geox names some of the countries it makes in: Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, India, Myanmar, China, Morocco and Spain. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Vietnam | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| India | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| Cambodia | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Indonesia | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Myanmar | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Very high |
| Morocco | Regular violations | Well below a living wage | Low |
| Spain | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| BangladeshUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| TürkiyeUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Very high |
| PakistanUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | High |
Evidence
What we found
- Modern slavery statement
- Independent social audits of all its main factories
- Uses little or no cotton (e.g. wool, linen or leather products)
- Doesn't show where its leather comes from. Leather is linked to hazardous tannery work and forced labour on some cattle ranches, so it can't be graded Good until it traces or certifies it.
Research notes Geox owns no factories now: its shoes and clothing are made by about 200 outside suppliers, mainly in Asia, and its own Serbian factory closed in 2021. Its latest country breakdown (2019) put 90% of footwear in Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, India, Myanmar and China, with the rest in Serbia, Morocco and Spain, and 99% of clothing in Vietnam, Indonesia and China; it publishes no factory list or current shares. An independent firm carries out social audits (84 at 60 suppliers in 2023), but results are not published, its supplier code asks only for the legal minimum wage, and it is a Leather Working Group member without saying how much of its leather is certified or where the hides come from.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | Published a modern slavery statement for 2019 describing about 200 suppliers, 75 third-party social audits and a zero-tolerance policy. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Listed | Company profile records two labour stories on Eastern European shoe and garment factories, with two response requests and a 50% response rate. View |
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.
- In mid-2017 more than twenty workers reportedly collapsed in the heat at Geox's own factory in Vranje, Serbia, with workers also complaining of glue fumes, toilet restrictions and abusive supervisors; a labour inspection found conditions acceptable, and the factory closed in 2021 (Masina, 2017). Source
- A 2017 Clean Clothes Campaign report on poverty wages and poor conditions in shoe and garment factories in Ukraine, Serbia and Hungary named Geox among the brands produced for; Geox did not respond to requests for comment (BHRRC, 2017). Source
- In August 2021 about 150 former workers protested outside Geox's closed factory in Vranje, Serbia, saying they learned of the closure from social media and demanding severance pay; management refused to meet them (N1, 2021). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 10
Show all 10 sources
- Geox - Good On You · search the archive · No evidence of living wages; unspecified LWG claim; uses leather
- Geox - Business & Human Rights Resource Centre · search the archive · Two labour stories; 50% response rate
- Geox heatwave: more than twenty workers collapsed (Masina) · search the archive · 2017 collapses at Geox Vranje factory; inspectorate found conditions optimal
- Geox Company Closing Its Plant in Vranje (Beta) · search the archive · Vranje plant with 1,200 jobs closing in 2021
- Protest outside closed Geox plant in southern Serbia (N1, 2021) · search the archive · August 2021: about 150 former workers of the closed 1,200-worker Vranje plant protested, demanding severance pay; management refused to meet them
Published by Geox or its owner
- Geox Modern Slavery Statement (FY2019) · search the archive · FY2019: footwear 90.1% Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, India, Myanmar, China), 9.9% Serbia, Morocco and Spain; apparel 99.3% Asia (Vietnam, Indonesia, China), 0.7% Italy; about 200 suppliers; 75 social audits by an independent third party; 38 nominated tanneries; wages must meet national law
- Supply Chain - Geox · search the archive · All factories in an audit programme run by an independent international company
- Geox Annual Report 2024 · search the archive · Production by partners mainly in the Far East; 2,454 employees at end of 2024; hides among materials bought
- Geox Non-Financial Consolidated Statement 2023 · search the archive · 84 social, ethical and environmental audits at 60 suppliers in 2023 (61 at 56 in 2022); supplier code requires the legal minimum wage; Leather Working Group member
- Geox Sustainability (geox.com) · search the archive · Member of the Leather Working Group; no share of certified leather or hide origin given
Company details
- Headquarters
- Italy
- Employees
- About 2,454
- Last researched
- 24 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Geox ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/geox, last researched 24 October 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency 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 Geox.