The North Face

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

Last researched 2 November 2026 · 7 sources

US outdoor brand selling jackets and camping gear.

The North Face's supply chain was linked to forced labour in 2023, which it has only partly acted on, and workers in Bangladesh and Vietnam are very unlikely to earn a living wage.

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Why it's graded Lacks transparency

Not met: Meets 3 of 6 Good requirements.
Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: no evidence of a living wage 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 2023) was a link through a supplier, which the company has only partly acted on.
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 3 of 6

Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
Not met: Respects worker rightsJudged on where its products are made: worker rights are poorly protected in China, Bangladesh and Vietnam.
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 2

Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
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

VF's figures name Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia and China. Press and retailer reports name Türkiye. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.

Where it's made, and conditions there
Country	Worker rights	Legal minimum wage	Forced labour risk
China	No guarantee of rights	Below a living wage	Moderate
Bangladesh	No guarantee of rights	Far below a living wage	Moderate
Vietnam	Systematic violations	Well below a living wage	Moderate
Cambodia	No guarantee of rights	Far below a living wage	Moderate
Türkiye	No guarantee of rights	Below a living wage	Very high
Indonesia	No guarantee of rights	Well below a living wage	Moderate
IndiaUsual for the industry	No guarantee of rights	Well below a living wage	High
PakistanUsual for the industry	No guarantee of rights	Far below a living wage	High

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
Modern slavery statement
Independent social audits of all its main factories

Research notes The North Face is VF Corporation's largest brand. VF owns no factories and sources from about 216 independent factories in about 24 countries, mainly Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia and China, with The North Face also made in Türkiye; no share by country is published. VF publishes a factory list covering all tier 1 and most tier 2 sites, audits suppliers and scored 46/100 in the 2026 Ethical Fashion Report, above average, but it has no time-bound living wage target (only 3 of 12 assessed factories met a fair wage threshold in FY24) and has not signed the International Accord.

What independent sources say

Source	Result	Details
Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report	Listed	Owner VF Corporation scored 46 out of 100 in the 2026 Ethical Fashion Report (average 31.5), after 55 in 2024. View
Fashion Transparency Index (Fashion Revolution)	Listed	The North Face scored 163.8 out of 250 (about 66%) in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index, well above the 26% average. View
UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry	Listed	Covered by VF Corporation's FY2026 modern slavery statement: about 216 independent contractor factories in about 24 countries, led by Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia and China; VF owns no factories. View
News reporting and NGO investigations	Problem found	Bureau of Investigative Journalism (2025) linked a Vietnamese shoe supplier of The North Face to a Chinese sister plant using Xinjiang labour transfers; VF disputes any link to its products. View

Confirmed issues 2

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?
2023	Link through a supplierA 2025 Bureau of Investigative Journalism investigation found that Fulgent Sun's Vietnam factory, which makes The North Face shoes, received materials and parts from sister plant Sunshine Footwear in Fujian, China, where Uyghur workers transferred from Xinjiang were filmed working as late as 2023 (TBIJ, 2025). Source · search the archive	PartlyVF says it ended direct ties with the Fujian plant in February 2024 and its parts missed VF products, but kept buying from the Vietnam factory and shared no records.
2017	The Worker Rights Consortium found that Horizon Outdoor in Cambodia, which made VF products including The North Face, illegally fired a newly elected union officer and threatened to fire 50 workers (WRC, 2017). Source · search the archivePut right The company has put this right for the people affected, so it no longer counts against the grade.	YesAfter WRC contact, VF and the factory reinstated the union officer with full back pay and dropped plans to fire 50 workers (WRC, 2018).

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.

Turkish supplier Gelisim Tekstil, once The North Face's second-largest producer, said in 2025 that the brand cut its orders by about 80%, which could halve its 1,200-strong workforce (Just Style, 2025). Source
A 2023 Asia Floor Wage Alliance and Global Labor Justice report said factories supplying VF, Nike and Levi's in six Asian countries still owed workers pandemic-era wages; amounts were not broken down by brand. Source

Sources and actions

Sources 7

Show all 7 sources

VF Corporation - Good Shopping Guide (ethical.org.au) · search the archive · 2026 Ethical Fashion Report: VF Corporation scored 46/100 (average 31.5); FTI 2023 66%; not an Accord signatory
Horizon Outdoor (Worker Rights Consortium) · search the archive · 2017 illegal firing of union officer at Cambodian factory making VF products incl. The North Face; reinstated with back pay
US corporate human rights index: VF (BHRRC, 2025) · search the archive · Only 3 of 12 assessed supplier facilities passed Fair Wage Network threshold in FY24; no living wage evidence
Vans, North Face, Timberland skirting forced labour law (TBIJ) · search the archive · Fulgent Sun's Vietnam plant makes The North Face shoes and gets parts from a Fujian sister plant that used Xinjiang labour transfers; VF denies this
The North Face cuts Türkiye production (Just Style) · search the archive · Gelisim Tekstil says The North Face cut orders about 80%; up to half of 1,200 jobs at risk
VF Corporation factory list · search the archive · Factory list updated twice a year covering 100% of tier 1 and about 80% of tier 2 by spend

Published by The North Face or its owner

FY26 VF Modern Slavery Statement · search the archive · About 216 contractor factories in about 24 countries; top: Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, China; no owned factories; audit programme

Company details

Owned by: VF Corporation
Headquarters: United States
Last researched: 2 November 2026
Cite this page: Labour Lens, "Is The North Face ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/the-north-face, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
Method: Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means

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