Jack Wolfskin
Harm on record. Has recent confirmed harm to workers that it hasn't put right.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 7 sources
German outdoor brand selling jackets, footwear and camping gear.
In 2023, migrant workers at Taiwanese mills supplying Jack Wolfskin paid recruitment fees of up to US$6,000 and had documents held.
Also worth knowing
Jack Wolfskin has only partly put this right.
Better-graded outdoor
Graded higher than Jack Wolfskin, 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.
Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Jack Wolfskin? Send a right of reply.
Compare Jack Wolfskin with another brand
Why it's graded Harm on record
- Not met: Meets 3 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has a red flag for forced or child labour. On Track needs no forced or child labour, clear labour breaches or failing independent ratings.
- 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: forced labour, last recorded in 2023.
Good requirements 3 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: working towards one
- Not met: Respects worker rightsA confirmed problem counts against it: union rights breach, last recorded in 2024
- 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) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeOnly in a few products: cotton
Red flags 1
- 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
Accreditations 1
Where it's made
Vietnam has the largest share, 25%. Bangladesh is next, at 24%.
| Country | Share | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vietnam | 25% | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Bangladesh | 24% | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Cambodia | 18% | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| China | 17% | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Myanmar | 11% | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Very high |
| Indonesia | 3% | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Türkiye | 1% | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Very high |
| Germany | 1% | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
Evidence
What we found
- Uses cotton in only a few products, so the raw-material check doesn't hold it back for Good. It doesn't show where its cotton comes from. The "Open supply chain" star needs all of it traced, certified or upcycled.
- Publishes supplier list
Research notes Jack Wolfskin has been a Fair Wear member since 2010 and was rated Good, with a score of 63, in its 2026 Brand Performance Check covering 2024; it was previously a Leader. Most products are made in Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China and Myanmar, and it publishes its production partners and discloses all locations on Fair Wear's transparency portal. Its own reporting shows average garment wages 5-39% below living wages in every Asian sourcing country, with no funded plan or deadline to close the gap. A 2025 investigation linked a Chinese shoe supplier to Uyghur labour transfers. Owned by China's ANTA Sports since 2025; sold in Australia mainly online through retailers such as ASOS.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Fair Wear | Member | Fair Wear member since 2010, rated Good (score 63) in the Brand Performance Check covering 2024. View |
| Ethical Clothing Australia | Not listed | Not in Ethical Clothing Australia's current brand directory; products are not made in Australia. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Problem found | Named in Business & Human Rights Resource Centre records, including the 2025 Transparentem report on labour abuses in Taiwan's textile industry. View |
| B Corp directory | Not listed | No B Corp certification found. View |
Confirmed issues 4
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? |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | About 11% of Jack Wolfskin's 2024 production was in Myanmar, where independent unions are largely banned, and it kept sourcing there despite Fair Wear's strong recommendation to exit; four worker complaints came from Myanmar factories in 2024 (Fair Wear Brand Performance Check, 2026). Source · search the archive | PartlyCut its Myanmar share, phased out one of two factories and uses heightened monitoring; says its remaining factory pays at least Fair Wear's wage guidance. |
| 2024 | Seven of 20 audit reports on Jack Wolfskin suppliers found excessive overtime, and eight worker complaints in 2024 covered issues including wages, contracts, safety and freedom of association (Fair Wear Brand Performance Check, 2026). Source · search the archive | PartlyJack Wolfskin follows up audit findings through Fair Wear corrective action plans, but Fair Wear found some high-volume suppliers still had overtime problems. |
| 2023 | Transparentem's 2022-2023 investigation of Taiwanese textile mills supplying global brands, including Jack Wolfskin, found migrant workers who had paid recruitment fees of up to USD 6,000 and other ILO forced labour indicators such as document retention and obstacles to quitting (Transparentem, 2025). Source · search the archive | PartlyNot on Transparentem's list of buyers that took no action; suppliers and buyers have repaid over US$4m of about US$6m in fees, its own share unpublished. |
| 2023 | Link through a supplierA Bureau of Investigative Journalism investigation found that Sunshine Footwear in Fujian, China, which has supplied Jack Wolfskin, took part in Xinjiang state labour transfers of Uyghur workers, with Uyghurs filmed working there for years after 2021; its group's Vietnam plant also makes Jack Wolfskin shoes (TBIJ, 2025). Source · archived copy | Not knownJack Wolfskin and its then owner Topgolf Callaway did not respond to the investigation; no action on the supplier has been reported. |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Transparentem: Following the Thread · search the archive · 2022-2023 probe of nine Taiwanese mills: fees up to US$6,000, forced labour signs; Jack Wolfskin contacted, not among buyers taking no action.
- Transparentem: On the Mend · search the archive · July 2026 update: almost USD 6 million in recruitment fees being repaid, more than USD 4 million already returned.
- TBIJ: Vans, North Face, Timberland are major US brands skirting forced labour law to source from China · archived copy · Sunshine Footwear (Fujian) used Uyghur labour transfers and supplied Jack Wolfskin; group's Vietnam plant makes its shoes; sold to ANTA 2025.
- Fair Wear Brand Performance Check 2026: Jack Wolfskin · search the archive · Covers 2024; Good, 63; VN 25%, BD 24%, KH 18%, CN 17%, MM 11%, ID 3%, TR 1%; most Asian wages below living wage; overtime in 7 of 20 audits.
- Jack Wolfskin Social Report 2024 · search the archive · 33 factories in 10 countries; wages 5-39% below living wage by country; 8 Fair Wear complaints; supplier list since 2014; a Myanmar partner dropped.
- ASOS Australia: Jack Wolfskin · search the archive · Jack Wolfskin products sold to Australian shoppers.
Published by Jack Wolfskin or its owner
- Jack Wolfskin: Company · search the archive · Headquartered in Idstein, Germany; about 1,500 employees worldwide.
Company details
- Owned by
- ANTA Sports
- Headquarters
- Germany
- Employees
- About 1,500
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Jack Wolfskin ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/jack-wolfskin, 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 Jack Wolfskin.