Labour Lens

Jack & Jones

Lacks transparency

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

Clothing & footwear

Partly verified: what this means

Last researched 2 November 2026 · 7 sources

Danish menswear brand selling jeans and casualwear.

Jack & Jones' supply chain was linked to forced labour in 2020, which it didn't act on, and workers in Bangladesh and India are very unlikely to earn a living wage.

Better-graded basics

Graded higher than Jack & Jones, selling the same kinds of things. Second-hand first.

13 op shops and resale platforms, Good by ruleBuying second-hand or refurbished: SWOP Clothing Exchange and AirRobe and 11 more · See them allGoodIstoClothing & footwearPremium everyday clothingMade in Portugal, where legal wages are close to a living wage, and shows its suppliers.GoodPartly verifiedbassikeMissing: a full independent supply chain audit, where its earlier stages happen and 2 more · Clothing & footwearOrganic cotton casual wearPays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.On TrackPartly verifiedArmedangelsMissing: living wage proof · Clothing & footwearOrganic cotton fashion and basicsPays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.On TrackVerified

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

See every basics brand

See better everyday fashion options

Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Jack & Jones? Send a right of reply.

Compare Jack & Jones with another brand

Why it's graded Lacks transparency

  • Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
  • Holds the grade back: It has 3 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, unaudited production in high-risk countries and forced or child labour. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
  • It isn't Harm on record: the most serious problem on its record (forced labour link, last recorded in 2020) is more than 5 years old.
  • 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 2 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 China and Bangladesh, 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
  • Not 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 listPublishes its supplier list
  • Met: High-risk raw materials (cotton and leather) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeTraced or certified: cotton. Only in a few products: leather

Red flags 3

  • 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
  • Red flag: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain

Stars it would earn as Good

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

Where it's made

From its parent group's supplier list, which covers Jack & Jones and its sister brands. Jack & Jones publishes no breakdown of its own, so these are group-wide shares. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.

Where it's made, share by country, and conditions there
CountryShareWorker rightsLegal minimum wageForced labour risk
China41%No guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageModerate
Bangladesh21%No guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageModerate
India16%No guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageHigh
MyanmarNot givenNo guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageVery high
VietnamUsual for the industry5%Systematic violationsWell below a living wageModerate
CambodiaUsual for the industry2%No guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageModerate
TürkiyeUsual for the industry2%No guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageVery high
IndonesiaUsual for the industry2%No guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
PakistanUsual for the industry1%No guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageHigh

Evidence

What we found

  • Passes the raw-material check for clothes and shoes: traces or certifies its cotton.
  • Publishes supplier list
  • Signed the International Accord on garment factory safety Source
  • Modern slavery statement
  • 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.
  • Traces or certifies most but not all of its cotton. That doesn't count against it for Good, but the "Open supply chain" star needs all of it traced, certified or upcycled.

Research notes Jack & Jones is made by independent suppliers working for its owner Bestseller, which publishes its factory list; of Bestseller's 840 suppliers, about 35% of production is in China, 16% in Bangladesh and 15% in India, and 24 suppliers (2.8%) are in Myanmar, with other countries making up the rest. Bestseller has signed the International Accord and the Pakistan Accord and is a full Ethical Trading Initiative member, but ACT rates its living wage work as committed but not planning and there is no public evidence suppliers pay a living wage. All its cotton is certified or branded, with Better Cotton as the minimum. Leather is limited to belts and some accessories.

What independent sources say

SourceResultDetails
Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion ReportListedBestseller is rated F in Baptist World Aid's Good Shopping Guide; its ethical.org.au page shows no Ethical Fashion Report score, including for the 2026 edition. View
Fashion Transparency Index (Fashion Revolution)ListedBestseller scored 41% in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index, the latest full index. View
Business & Human Rights Resource CentreListedBestseller profile records response requests on Myanmar, Bangladesh and Türkiye supplier cases, including the Tianjin Fashion Milestone and Huabo Times factories in Myanmar. View

Confirmed issues 1

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 recordedWhat happenedMade amends?
2020Link through a supplierThe Australian Strategic Policy Institute's 2020 'Uyghurs for Sale' report named Jack & Jones among 83 brands linked to factories using Uyghur labour transfers, via supplier Esquel, whose Xinjiang spinning mills employed Uyghurs (ASPI, 2020). Source · search the archiveNoBestseller confirmed it works with Esquel, said Esquel denied forced labour, and said it did not plan to leave the region or stop working with Esquel (FashionNetwork, 2020).

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.

  • Workers at Myanmar factories supplying Bestseller, including Tianjin Fashion Milestone and Huabo Times, reported forced overtime, wage deductions and denied leave in 2022; Bestseller disputed some claims and said it was monitoring a corrective action plan (BHRRC, 2022). Source
  • A Bestseller supplier in Türkiye was accused of poor conditions and of denying full compensation to more than 900 workers reportedly laid off for joining another union (BHRRC). Source

Sources and actions

Sources 7

Show all 7 sources
  1. Bestseller - Good Shopping Guide (ethical.org.au) · search the archive · F rating; no Ethical Fashion Report score; FTI 2023 41%; International and Pakistan Accord; ETI full member; ACT grade E; still sources in Myanmar
  2. Bestseller - Business & Human Rights Resource Centre · search the archive · 17 response requests; Türkiye union lay-offs; no evidence of living wage
  3. Quién produce aún en Myanmar (Modaes, April 2025) · search the archive · Bestseller data: 840 suppliers; China 35.1%, Bangladesh 16%, India 14.8% of production; 24 suppliers (2.8%) in Myanmar
  4. Bestseller defends Jack & Jones over forced labour report (FashionNetwork, 2020) · search the archive · ASPI named Jack & Jones via Esquel; Bestseller to keep working with Esquel
  5. Bestseller - Public factory list · search the archive · About 750 partner businesses; tier 0 and tier 1 factory list updated six times a year
  6. Bestseller - Cotton · search the archive · 100% of cotton from certified and branded sources; Better Cotton minimum; at least 30% organic in 2025
  7. Jack & Jones JACWINSTON reversible leather belt (Boozt) · search the archive · Jack & Jones leather accessory, 100% leather; leather limited to belts and some accessories

Company details

Headquarters
Denmark
Last researched
2 November 2026
Cite this page
Labour Lens, "Is Jack & Jones ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/jack-and-jones, last researched 2 November 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 Jack & Jones.

Send evidenceSend a right of reply