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RSN launches YESS against slavery in cotton harvesting, yarn production

The Responsible Sourcing Network (RSN), a project of the non-profit company, launched its newest initiative, Yarn Ethically & Sustainably Sourced (YESS). YESS will work to do away with modern-day slavery in cotton harvesting and yarn production by enabling yarn spinners to identify and eliminate cotton produced with forced labour and be verified for having fair labour practices. The development of YESS is supported by Humanity United.

Cotton produced by forced labour documented in at least nine countries according to the US Department of Labour makes its way into clothing and home goods sold by major brands and retailers. This program will pilot in India and Bangladesh, which have numerous spinning mills and are highly affected by forced labour.

Major brands and retailers have endorsed a Statement of Support for this approach including adidas, Hudson’s Bay Company, Indigenous and Woolworths Holdings. YESS will assist companies to comply with new anti-slavery regulations, minimize verification costs, establish an industry-wide traceability approach, and manage a global list of verified spinners. Current multi-stakeholder endorsements are linked here.

YESS is one of just a few initiatives working directly with spinning mills. Located in the middle of the supply chain, spinning mills are uniquely positioned to identify cotton produced with forced labor and prevent it from entering corporate supply chains. This initiative identifies a gap in transparency between where forced labour occurs in the cotton fields and the facilities in which different cottons are blended together. YESS aims to close this gap by focusing on yarn spinning mills in the supply chain, and establishing a training, assessment, and verification process.

As new laws require companies to report on their actions to address modern slavery and human trafficking, more consumers demand ethical manufacturing of their products, and investors increase benchmarking companies against one another on their human rights’ records, YESS will be a vital tool for compliance and responsible sourcing. YESS offers a truly revolutionary approach that will allow apparel brands to identify and root out forced labor from the middle of our supply chains.

 
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