Extinction Rebellion (XR) activists plan to launch #PayUp campaign in London this week to urge fast fashion brands to financially support suppliers overseas throughout the pandemic. The protests orchestrated by XR’s Fashion Action and Textiles Rebellion arms will target brands accused of either failing to pay for orders which were completed or in production when lockdown fore ced non-essential retailers to close, cancelling orders at short-notice in breach of contract terms, or pushing for significant discounts from suppliers.

Among this cohort are the likes of Arcadia Group, owner of Topshop and Miss Selfridge; Urban Outfitters Group, which also owns Free People and Anthropologie; Primark, GAP and Levi Strauss.

During the protests, attendees will wave banners and flags, erect signs and offer to repair damaged clothing. Speeches and poetry performances will also take place. According to non-profit Support Garment Workers, which is co-orchestrating the #PayUp campaign, $3billion (£2.4billion) worth of completed and in-process orders for garments, footwear and accessories have been cancelled or put on hold as a result of Covid-19 in Bangladesh alone. This trend has put two million jobs at risk, the organization estimates.

Since the #PayUp campaign first launched, swathes of brands have publicly vowed to honor all completed and in-process orders and to work with suppliers to negotiate upcoming orders. Among them are ASOS, Next, Zara’s parent firm Inditex and VF Corporation, owner of Timberland, Vans and The North Face.

Aside from XR and Support Garment Workers, #PayUp is being supported by Remake, the Clean Clothes Campaign, Oxfam Australia, Traidcraft Exchange, Labour Behind the Label, the International Labour Rights Forum and United Students Against Sweatshops. Petitions associated with the campaign have collectively garnered more than 210,000 signatures.