Newcastle Hats
On Track. Pays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources
WA maker of canvas, oilskin and leather work hats.
Newcastle Hats makes its work and outdoor hats 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.
Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Newcastle Hats? Send a right of reply.
Compare Newcastle Hats with another brand
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 and leather) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: cotton and leather
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 Newcastle Hats'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.
Hats: On Track, the same as Newcastle Hats overall, because nothing we know differs between them.
- A product made without cotton or leather: Good
Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.
Where it's made
From Newcastle Hats'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.
- 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 Newcastle Hats makes canvas, oilskin and leather hats and hard-hat sun brims, handcrafted by its own team in Western Australia. It is accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia, which checks that workers in its Australian supply chain receive award wages and entitlements, and which lists 100% of its products as made in Australia. The brand is run by Mundaring-based VISIONSafe Pty Ltd, a safety equipment supplier whose other products (eyewear, lighting, knives and other PPE) are sourced from overseas and are not covered by the accreditation; staff numbers are not published, and some materials such as Italian cowhide leather are imported.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Ethical Clothing Australia | Certified | Newcastle Hats is listed in Ethical Clothing Australia's current brand directory, with 100% of 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 6
Show all 6 sources
- Ethical Clothing Australia: Newcastle Hats · search the archive · Listed in the current Ethical Clothing Australia brand directory (sitemap updated October 2026); canvas and leather hats, safety helmet brims and custom headwear; 100% of products made in Australia; manufactures locally in Western Australia; roots in the early 1980s.
- Good Shopping Guide (ethical.org.au): Newcastle Hats · search the archive · Brand of VISIONSafe Pty Ltd, an Australian-owned private company founded 1998 in Mundaring, WA; all Newcastle Hats are made in Australia and ECA accredited; VISIONSafe sources its other products from around the world.
- Australian Made: Vision Safe licensee (Outback Hat) · search the archive · Vision Safe holds the Australian Made licence for hats handcrafted by the team at Newcastle Hats.
- Shire of Mundaring business directory: Vision Safe Pty Ltd t/a Newcastle Hats · search the archive · Newcastle Hats is a trading name of Vision Safe Pty Ltd, a PPE supplier in Mundaring, WA.
- VISIONSafe · search the archive · PPE supplier established 1998; sources products from Australia and overseas including the US, UK, Taiwan and South Africa; Newcastle Hats listed among its brands.
Published by Newcastle Hats or its owner
- Newcastle Hats website · search the archive · Hats handcrafted in Western Australia; leather hats use Italian cowhide; brand still trading in 2026.
Company details
- Owned by
- VISIONSafe Pty Ltd
- Headquarters
- Australia
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Newcastle Hats ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/newcastle-hats, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What On Track means
Better-graded workwear and uniforms
Second-hand and refurbished goods create no new factory work, so they're Good by rule and come first.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Newcastle Hats.