Worker abuses have been detected at factories in Ethiopia that supply brands like Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein. Ethiopian workers who make clothes for their high-street stores routinely face verbal abuse and discrimination. Workers in PVH supplier factories in Ethiopia are forced to do unpaid overtime and lose pay for drinking water at their work stations. Hiring managers at one factory felt the stomachs of job applicants to see if they were pregnant.

PVH, which runs Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein, is one of the world’s top clothing companies, with about a million garment workers in its supply chain. PVH has helped finance the flagship manufacturing hub in the Ethiopian town of Hawassa.

One of the poorest nations in Africa, Ethiopia is pushing to switch its economic focus from agriculture to manufacturing, in the face of increased scrutiny over labor conditions and rates of pay in the supply chains of global fashion brands. As labor, raw material and tax costs rise in Asian factories, Ethiopia is seeking to offer a cheaper alternative, attracting big brands such as US chain Gap and Sweden’s H&M. Ethiopia does not have a minimum wage but companies sourcing from Ethiopia have a code of conduct prohibiting abuse.