Giorgio Armani
Harm on record. Has recent confirmed harm to workers that it hasn't put right.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources
Milan luxury house behind Giorgio Armani and Emporio Armani.
In 2024, a Milan court put Giorgio Armani's production unit under administration after subcontractors made its bags with undocumented workers in unsafe workshops.
Also worth knowing
Giorgio Armani has only partly put this right.
Better-graded luxury and designer
Graded higher than Giorgio Armani, selling the same kinds of things. Second-hand first.
No luxury and designer brand selling new goods is Good yet. These are the strongest so far. 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 Harm on record
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 4 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, clear breaches of labour conditions, a hidden, unaudited supply chain in high-risk countries and a problem with pay, rights or safety with no fix shown. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- Holds the grade back: It's Harm on record because of a serious confirmed problem from the last 5 years that it has only partly put right: labour rights breach, last recorded in 2024.
Good requirements 1 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsA confirmed problem counts against it: labour rights breach, last recorded in 2024
- Not 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 (cotton and leather) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: cotton and leather
Red flags 4
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wageShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 2 red flags that set it.
- Red flag: Clear breaches of labour conditions
- Red flag: Hidden supply chain, mostly in countries with poor worker rights
- Red flag: A confirmed problem with pay, rights or safety not shown to be put rightShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 2 red flags that set it.
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
Giorgio Armani says which countries it makes its products in, but doesn't name the factories.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Hong Kong | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Low |
Evidence
What we found
- Signed the International Accord on garment factory safety
- Being made in Italy doesn't count towards a living wage or audit here: Italian fashion and leather goods, where Milan prosecutors have found luxury brands' subcontractors exploiting migrant workers. It would need to publish its suppliers or have them independently audited.
- Doesn't show where its cotton comes from. Cotton is linked to forced labour in Xinjiang and Turkmenistan, and child labour in several growing regions, so it can't be graded Good until it traces or certifies it.
- 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 Armani makes much of its clothing at its own plants in Italy (Trento, Settimo Torinese, Matelica and others) and outsources the rest, but publishes no factory list or country shares. Australian imports come from owned or outsourced sites in Italy, China and Hong Kong. Its 2024 report lists 310 supplier audits covering about 72% of outsourced production costs. It has signed the International Accord but has no living wage commitment and reports no certified cotton share. In 2024-2025 a Milan court and Italy's competition regulator found serious abuses at subcontractors making Armani leather bags.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Fashion Transparency Index (Fashion Revolution) | Listed | Giorgio Armani scored 38% in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index (average 26%) and 9/100 in the 2025 climate-focused edition. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Problem found | Records the April 2024 Milan court order placing an Armani production company under judicial administration over subcontractors exploiting migrant workers, with Armani's comment. View |
| News reporting and NGO investigations | Listed | Fined 3.5 million euros by Italy's competition authority in August 2025 for ethics claims contradicted by conditions at leather goods subcontractors. View |
Confirmed issues 2
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 | In August 2025 Italy's competition authority fined Giorgio Armani S.p.A. and G.A. Operations 3.5 million euros for misleading ethics claims, finding that subcontractors making Armani leather bags removed machine safety devices, had poor hygiene and used undeclared workers, and that Armani staff had visited one workshop monthly (AGCM, 2025). Source · archived copy | NoArmani denied wrongdoing and appealed the fine to the regional administrative court; the appeal was still pending in July 2026. |
| 2024 | In April 2024 a Milan court put Giorgio Armani Operations, the group's production unit, under judicial administration after a supplier subcontracted Armani bags to Chinese-run workshops near Milan where undocumented workers worked excess hours in unsafe, unsanitary conditions; the unit was not charged (FashionUnited, 2024). Source · archived copy | PartlyArmani cut suppliers judged at risk and started a supply chain tracing project; the court lifted its oversight in February 2025. No pay to affected workers was reported. |
Sources and actions
Sources 6
Show all 6 sources
- Giorgio Armani SpA - Good Shopping Guide (ethical.org.au) · search the archive · Accord signatory; FTI 38% (2023); 0% certified cotton; imports from owned or outsourced sites in Hong Kong, China and Italy
- Italian court targets Armani over labour violations (FashionUnited) · archived copy · April 2024 judicial administration of GA Operations; Manifatture Lombarde subcontracted bags and accessories to workshops with undocumented workers
- Illegal recruitment: Armani's judicial administration revoked (La Conceria) · search the archive · Court lifted administration on 18 February 2025 after Armani cut at-risk suppliers and launched a tracing project
- AGCM press release PS12793: Armani fined 3.5 million euros · archived copy · Leather bags largely outsourced; subcontractors removed safety devices, poor hygiene, off-the-books workers; fine 1 Aug 2025
- Armani parent posts 2025 net profit, challenges Italian antitrust fine (Asharq Al-Awsat, 2026) · search the archive · July 2026: Armani appealing the 3.5 million euro fine to a regional administrative court
Published by Giorgio Armani or its owner
- Armani Group Sustainability Report Summary 2024 · search the archive · 9,100 employees end 2024; 310 supplier audits covering ~72% of outsourced production costs; Italian GA Operations sites; no country split
Company details
- Headquarters
- Italy
- Employees
- About 9,100
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Giorgio Armani ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/giorgio-armani, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Harm on record 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 Giorgio Armani.