Hard Yakka

Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.

Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources

Australian workwear brand selling work clothing and boots.

Hard Yakka can't show that the workers who make its products in Bangladesh and Indonesia earn a living wage, which workers there are very unlikely to.

Also worth knowing

It has no full independent audit.

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Why it's graded Lacks transparency

Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: no evidence of a living wage and unaudited production in high-risk countries. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
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.

How grades are decided

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 rightsMost of its products are made in countries such as Bangladesh and China, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
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

Red flags 2

Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain

Stars it would earn as Good

None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars

Where it's made

These are Workwear Group's countries across all its brands; Hard Yakka doesn't say where its own products are made.

Where it's made, and conditions there
Country	Worker rights	Legal minimum wage	Forced labour risk
Australia	Strong protections	About a living wage	Low
Bangladesh	No guarantee of rights	Far below a living wage	Moderate
China	No guarantee of rights	Below a living wage	Moderate
Indonesia	No guarantee of rights	Well below a living wage	Moderate
India	No guarantee of rights	Well below a living wage	High
Vietnam	Systematic violations	Well below a living wage	Moderate
Fiji	We don't have labour ratings for this country yet.

Evidence

What we found

Signed the International Accord on garment factory safety
Modern slavery statement
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.
Uses leather in only a few products and doesn't show where it comes from. That doesn't count against it for Good, but the "Open supply chain" star needs all of it traced, certified or upcycled.

Research notes Hard Yakka is a Workwear Group label owned by Wesfarmers. Most of its range is made overseas by independent suppliers; Wesfarmers' 2025 statement maps Workwear Group sourcing to Australia, Bangladesh, China, Fiji, India, Indonesia and Vietnam, with no shares and no factory list. It signs the International Accord, uses Sedex audits with third-party audits for high-risk suppliers, and runs a worker helpline; some Australian-made lines are Ethical Clothing Australia accredited. Workwear Group scored 62/100 in the 2026 Ethical Fashion Report, well above average, but has no public living wage commitment. Its boots use leather of undisclosed origin.

What independent sources say

Source	Result	Details
Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report	Listed	Owner Workwear Group scored 62 out of 100 in the 2026 Ethical Fashion Report (average 31.5), after 49 in 2024. View
Australian Modern Slavery Register	Listed	Covered by Wesfarmers' 2025 Modern Slavery Statement: Workwear Group mapped tier 1 and 2 suppliers, ran 833 verification audits and reached 36,600 supplier workers through its 'Your Voice' helpline. View
Ethical Clothing Australia	Certified	Workwear Group is accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia for specific Australian-made product lines only, not its overseas-made range. View

Sources and actions

Sources 6

Show all 6 sources

Workwear Group Pty Ltd - Good Shopping Guide (ethical.org.au) · search the archive · 2026 Ethical Fashion Report: Workwear Group 62/100 (average 31.5); brands incl. Hard Yakka; Accord signatory; no supplier list
Ethical Clothing Australia - The Workwear Group · search the archive · Specific product lines made in Australia are ECA accredited

Published by Hard Yakka or its owner

Wesfarmers 2025 Modern Slavery Statement · search the archive · FY2025 sourcing map: WWG goods from AU, BD, CN, FJ, ID, IN, LK, PK, VN and others; 833 audits; Accord; Your Voice helpline
Trusted Supply - Workwear Group · search the archive · Sedex audits of overseas suppliers; high-risk suppliers must have third-party audits
Workwear Group: Empowering change - supplier training · search the archive · International suppliers in China, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Sri Lanka; some ECA-accredited Australian supply partners
Hard Yakka: Quality Leather · search the archive · Hard Yakka work boots use full-grain, crazy horse, suede and nubuck cowhide; no tanneries or origin named

Company details

Owned by: Workwear Group (Wesfarmers)
Headquarters: Australia
Last researched: 2 November 2026
Cite this page: Labour Lens, "Is Hard Yakka ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/hard-yakka, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
Method: Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means

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Second-hand and refurbished goods create no new factory work, so they're Good by rule and come first.

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