Labour Lens

Van Heusen

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

Australian brand selling men's business shirts and suits.

Van Heusen'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 2 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 2 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
  • Not met: High-risk raw materials (cotton and leather) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: 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

From PVH Brands Australia's supplier list, which covers Van Heusen and its sister brands. Van Heusen publishes no breakdown of its own, so the countries shown are the group's. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.

Where it's made, and conditions there
CountryWorker rightsLegal minimum wageForced labour risk
ChinaNo guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageModerate
BangladeshNo guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageModerate
VietnamSystematic violationsWell below a living wageModerate
IndiaNo guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageHigh
CambodiaNo guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageModerate
PakistanNo guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageHigh
Sri LankaSystematic violationsWell below a living wageModerate
PhilippinesNo guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
EthiopiaSystematic violationsFar below a living wageModerate
TürkiyeUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageVery high
IndonesiaUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate

Evidence

What we found

  • Publishes supplier list
  • Signed the International Accord on garment factory safety
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Independent social audits of all its main factories
  • 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.
  • 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.

Research notes Van Heusen's Australian range is run by PVH Brands Australia, wholly owned by PVH, although PVH sold the global Van Heusen name to Authentic Brands Group in 2021. Its site says all factories making its products follow an audited code covering wages, hours, freedom of association and forced and child labour, but not which countries make Van Heusen products. PVH uses about 1,000 factories in about 40 countries, publishes a factory list, signed the International Accord and has a living wage strategy limited to a few countries; abuses found at PVH suppliers in Ethiopia, Haiti and Mauritius are not tied to this brand.

What independent sources say

SourceResultDetails
Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion ReportListedPVH Brands Australia scored 47 out of 100 in the 2026 Ethical Fashion Report, above the 31.5 average (43 in 2024). View
Fashion Transparency Index (Fashion Revolution)ListedPVH scored 48% in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index, above the 26% average. View
Corporate Human Rights Benchmark (World Benchmarking Alliance)ListedPVH scored 36.2 out of 100 in the 2026 Corporate Human Rights Benchmark, below the 53.7 average. View
Australian Modern Slavery RegisterListedCovered by PVH Corp's consolidated modern slavery statement, which reports about 1,000 factories in about 40 countries but no country breakdown. View

Confirmed issues 3

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?
2023Link through a supplierA Transparentem investigation found signs of forced labour and illegal recruitment fees charged to migrant workers at Mauritian garment factories, including REAL Garments, which supplied PVH; the report does not say which PVH brands were made there (Transparentem, 2023-2024). Source · search the archivePartlyPVH agreed in January 2024 to repay recruitment fees at REAL Garments with two other buyers (about US$420,000); no source yet confirms the workers were paid.
2022Link through a supplierWorkers at the Val d'Or factory in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, which made clothes for PVH, were let go without legally owed severance when it closed in 2022; the brands made there are not linked to Van Heusen Australia (Black Enterprise, 2023). Source · search the archiveActed on The company has acted on this link, so it no longer counts against the grade.YesAfter Worker Rights Consortium involvement, PVH paid about US$1 million in 2023 to cover missed severance and pension for about 1,100 workers.
2019Link through a supplierA 2019 Worker Rights Consortium report found verbal abuse, pay as low as 12 cents an hour, unpaid overtime and pregnancy checks at PVH supplier factories in Ethiopia; the report does not link them to Van Heusen Australia (Reuters, 2019). Source · search the archivePartlyPVH said it would investigate immediately and act on any violations, noting some interviews were two years old; no remedy for workers has been reported.

Sources and actions

Sources 7

Show all 7 sources
  1. PVH Brands Australia - Good Shopping Guide (ethical.org.au) · search the archive · EFR 2026 47/100 (43 in 2024); CHRB 2026 36.2; FTI 2023 48%; PVH sold Van Heusen name to ABG in 2021; Accord signatory
  2. Fashion Brands to Compensate Garment Workers in Mauritius for Forced Labor (Transparentem) · search the archive · Signs of forced labour and illegal recruitment fees at five Mauritian factories; PVH pledged to reimburse REAL Garments workers (2024)
  3. PVH Corp modern slavery statement FY2024 (Australian register) · search the archive · Consolidated statement; about 1,000 factories in about 40 countries; no country shares
  4. Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein owner to investigate labour abuse (Globe and Mail / Reuters) · search the archive · WRC found abuse, 12-cent hourly pay, unpaid overtime and pregnancy checks at PVH suppliers in Ethiopia; PVH to investigate
  5. PVH Corp. statement on forced labor and modern slavery, fiscal 2025 · search the archive · Third-party audits of all Level 1 and key Level 2 factories; Accord participant
  6. Garment workers in Haiti compensated by Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein after factory closes (Black Enterprise) · search the archive · PVH paid US$1m in missed severance and pension to about 1,100 Val d'Or workers after WRC intervention (2023)

Published by Van Heusen or its owner

  1. About us - Van Heusen Australia · search the archive · Gazal licence since 1976, PVH Brands Australia since 2014; audited factory code; no countries of manufacture named

Company details

Headquarters
Australia
Last researched
2 November 2026
Cite this page
Labour Lens, "Is Van Heusen ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/van-heusen, 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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