Calls for ban on ultra-cheap fashion products made with forced labour [Video]

Human rights advocates are calling for Australian laws to “catch up with the rest of the world” as cost of living pressures drive sales at ultra-cheap fashion retailers.

Chinese fast fashion retailer Shein and e-commerce giant Temu have grown in popularity, with 800,000 and 1.26 million shoppers in Australia respectively each month, according to Roy Morgan research.

But concerns have been raised about the practices of some fast fashion firms, leading the European Union and US to ban the import of goods made with poor human rights practices.

Director of the University of NSW’s Australian Human Rights Institute Professor Justine Nolan said while fast fashion is not new and there is a place for different types of fashion, there are ethical considerations to be made.

“What we’re seeing here is real undercutting of global brands and Australian brands, because of the way these goods are being produced,” Nolan told Nine …