Humphrey Law
On Track. Pays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 4 sources
Family business knitting wool and cotton socks in Melbourne.
Humphrey Law makes its wool and cotton socks 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 On Track
- Not met: Meets 5 of 6 Good requirements.
- Met: No red flags.
Good requirements 5 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
- Not met: High-risk raw materials (cotton) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: cotton
Red flags 0
None found.
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
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 Humphrey Law'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.
Socks: On Track, the same as Humphrey Law overall, because nothing we know differs between them.
- A product made without cotton: Good
Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.
Where it's made
From Humphrey Law'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
- Owns or runs its own production
- 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.
Research notes Humphrey Law & Co. is a family business founded in 1947 that knits all its socks in its own factory in Heathmont, Melbourne, and is run by the founder's children. It is accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia, which checks that workers in its Australian supply chain receive award wages and entitlements, and Ethical Clothing Australia lists all its products as made in Australia. Yarns include Australian merino and imported alpaca, nylon and cotton; the company does not publish staff numbers or details of its yarn suppliers.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Ethical Clothing Australia | Certified | Humphrey Law & Co is listed in Ethical Clothing Australia's current brand directory, with all products made in Australia. View |
| Fair Wear | Unclear | Not checked; Fair Wear membership is not relevant to a brand making only in Australia. View |
| B Corp directory | Not listed | No B Corp certification was found in search results. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 4
Show all 4 sources
- Ethical Clothing Australia: Humphrey Law & Co · search the archive · Listed in the current Ethical Clothing Australia brand directory (sitemap updated October 2026); socks and hosiery; all products made in Australia; 357 solar panels on factory roof.
- Australian Made: Humphrey Law Socks licensee · search the archive · Australian Made licensee; factory in Heathmont, Melbourne for over 70 years; founded 1947 by Sidney Humphrey and Albert Law; managed by Albert's children Rob and Elizabeth; ADF combat sock contract since 2013; sold through David Jones, Myer and independents; exports to NZ, Japan, Korea and USA.
- Australian Made: Aussie Made feature, Humphrey Law · search the archive · Family business started in Heathmont in 1947; factory still on the Armstrong Road site; socks made wholly in Australia from the start.
- Australian Made: Humphrey Law competition, August 2026 · search the archive · Brand still trading in August 2026; Australian merino from NSW, alpaca from Italy and Peru, nylon and mercerised cotton from other suppliers; ECA accredited.
Company details
- Headquarters
- Australia
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Humphrey Law ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/humphrey-law, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What On Track means
Better-graded basics
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Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Humphrey Law.