Paspaley
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Family-owned Darwin company farming South Sea pearls.
Until Paspaley traces its gold and gemstones to the mine, it can't show that the miners who dig them are safe or fairly paid.
Also worth knowing
A deadly safety failure was documented in Paspaley's supply chain in 2012.
Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Paspaley? Send a right of reply.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 4 of 7 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It relies on high-risk mined materials it can't trace. That alone means a poor grade until it takes steps to trace them.
- It isn't Harm on record: the most serious problem on its record (deadly safety failure, last recorded in 2012) 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 unprotected.
Good requirements 4 of 7
- Met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: presumed because legal wages in Australia are about a living wage, not checked at the company
- Not met: Respects worker rightsA confirmed problem counts against it: deadly safety failure, last recorded in 2012
- Met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standardsPresumed from where it's made, not audited
- Not met: Shows where its earlier production stages happen, not just the final oneA "Made in" claim can cover only the final stage. Earlier stages to show: watch movements, cases and dials, and cast or set parts
- 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: Conflict-free: diamonds, gems and gold traced to the mine, lab-grown, recycled or Fairmined (the Kimberley Process alone isn't enough)
Red flags 3
- Red flag: Clear breaches of labour conditions
- Red flag: A confirmed problem with pay, rights or safety not shown to be put right
- Red flag: Relies on high-risk mined materials it can't trace
- Red flag: Fails its category's raw-material check (means Lacks transparency)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Estimates for its products
Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Paspaley'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.
Rings, Engagement & wedding rings, Necklaces & pendants, Earrings, Bracelets: Lacks transparency, the same as Paspaley overall, because nothing we know differs between them.
Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.
Where it's made
From Paspaley'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
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: gold and gemstone mining are linked to child labour, forced labour and mercury poisoning.
- Owns or runs its own production
- Modern slavery statement
- "Made in Australia" only means the last major stage happened there: under customs and consumer law, watch movements, cases and dials, and cast or set parts can be made elsewhere. It hasn't shown where those earlier stages happen, so where it's made counts towards On Track but not Good.
- Relies on gold and gemstones from artisanal mines where workers face mercury poisoning, silica dust and deadly collapses. It hasn't shown any steps to trace these materials to the mine, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does.
Research notes Paspaley farms its own pearls from wild-caught oysters in the Kimberley, with its pearling independently certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, and makes its jewellery in its own workshop, with pearls hand-set in Australia. It does not publish where its gold and diamonds come from, does not say it uses recycled gold, and is not known to be certified by the Responsible Jewellery Council; it is a member of CIBJO and joined the Watch & Jewellery Initiative 2030 in 2026. Its parent, Pearl Corporation of Australia, files Australian modern slavery statements covering pearling, pastoral and other group businesses.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | Pearl Corporation of Australia (Paspaley) has filed modern slavery statements, most recently for 2025. View |
| News reporting and NGO investigations | Problem found | Paspaley was fined $60,000 in 2015 after pleading guilty over the 2012 death of a pearl diver. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Not listed | No allegations involving Paspaley were identified. 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 recorded | What happened | Made amends? |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | A 22-year-old drift diver died in April 2012 on his second day working for Paspaley near Broome; WorkSafe WA found no written rescue procedure or drills, and Paspaley Pearling Company was convicted in 2015 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (WA prosecution record, 2015). Source · search the archive | Not knownPleaded guilty and fined $60,000 plus $5,000 costs in 2015; no source reports compensation to the diver's family. |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- WorkSafe WA – Prosecution: Paspaley Pearling Company Pty Ltd · search the archive · Convicted 19 Oct 2015, Broome Magistrates Court, OSH Act 1984 s19(1), over diver death on 14 April 2012; fined $60,000 plus $5,000 costs.
- Modern Slavery Register – Pearl Corporation of Australia 2025 · search the archive · Pearl Corporation of Australia 2025 modern slavery statement covering pearling, property, pastoral, ship repair and aviation.
- Benchpeg – Manufacturing Manager, Paspaley Pearling Company · search the archive · Paspaley runs its own Jewellery Workshop Division in Australia handling end-to-end production, bespoke work and repairs.
- Neos Kosmos – Paspaley fined for diver's death (2015) · search the archive · Diver Jarrod Hampton died in April 2012; no written rescue procedure or drills; Paspaley fined $60,000 plus $5,000 costs.
Published by Paspaley or its owner
- Paspaley Group – Sustainability · search the archive · MSC certified wild Pinctada maxima pearling; CIBJO member; WJI 2030 partner since April 2026; no mention of RJC, gold or diamond sourcing.
- Paspaley – Pearl FAQs · search the archive · Pearls cultivated in the Kimberley from wild-collected oysters; all pearls hand-set in Australia.
- Paspaley Group – Working in the pearling industry · search the archive · More than 1,200 employees worldwide; land-based and vessel-based pearl farms with crews of 10 to 50.
Company details
- Headquarters
- Australia
- Employees
- About 1,200
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Paspaley ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/paspaley, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Better-graded fine jewellery
No fine jewellery brand selling new goods is Good yet. These are the strongest so far.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Paspaley.