Just Transition Manifesto: A Fair Future for Fashion Workers

March 4, 2026

Just transition manifesto – Latest version open to key comments

The Clean Clothes campaign manifesto on a just transition in the textile and clothing industry in which we are actively involved has now taken a more complete form, but we still want to hear your opinion. We thank everyone who has already participated in its development, and now we are looking for comments that can improve its applicability and impact. Tell us if you support the manifesto and if we may have missed something important. Your opinion will help shape the future of the fashion industry that puts people and the planet ahead of profit.

Creating a just transition
A manifesto that puts workers ‘ rights at the center of fair climate policy

Introduction

Imagine a fair fashion system that puts people before profit. A system that truly meets the needs of everyone, without exploiting workers and destroying the environment. This is possible, but only if we stand together to defend the right to a dignified life and a future in which one can live. This manifesto sets out our shared vision of a just fashion system that creates and protects dignified, climate-resilient jobs on a healthy planet.

Poor living conditions, rising global temperatures, gender and racial violence, environmental breakdown – the greatest challenges of our time are rooted in the exploitation of workers and the planet for the profit of the few. Today’s fashion industry is growing thanks exclusively to the unbalanced division of global power and money, perfected by centuries of colonialism and imperialism. The richest fashion companies are getting even richer, while millions of textile workers – many of them women are underpaid, overworked and unprotected.

Fashion brands throw out billions of pieces of clothing each year through the exploitation of Labor and the depletion of Natural Resources. Their overproduction model impoverishes soil, poisons water, pollutes air, promotes deforestation and biodiversity loss, and increases emissions that heat the planet. Meanwhile, landfills and rivers are flooded with poorly to no-wear clothing, and communities are polluted with textile waste.

Climate and environmental crises are not a distant threat. They’re already here, deepening inequalities. The same workers who are barely surviving in the current system are paying the highest price for the climate crash. Floods, fires, storms and heatwaves are shutting down jobs, threatening the health and safety of workers. In extreme weather conditions, it becomes increasingly difficult to meet excessive production standards. Below a living wage and lack of Social Protection leave workers without safety nets when disaster strikes. The suppression of trade unionism silences their demands.

Change is possible, but many of the ‘Climate Solutions’ advocated by governments and fashion brands further exacerbate the situation of workers. Jobs are lost, wages remain unpaid, and workers are excluded from decisions about their own future decisions that are already shaping their lives today.

We know that we cannot fix an industry that is flawed in its very foundations. Instead, we are building a new, fair fashion system that puts the dignity of the workers and the renewal of the planet at the center. That turn won’t happen overnight.

It will require a combination of short-term reforms and long-term system transformation. These two directions of change will complement each other in the ongoing struggle for a just fashion system.

Our manifesto sets out a set of principles that must be the foundation of any action related to the future of fashion. Fair fashion system:

ensures decent work, high quality of life and equal rights for all workers along the supply chain
it achieves justice in all its forms – social, economic, gender and climate – now and in the future
redistribute wealth into the hands of the workers
ensure fair sharing of climate adaptation and mitigation costs
it is shaped by decisions made with and by workers
it restores nature and operates within planetary boundaries
reduces overproduction while strengthening job security
calls on companies and their management to be held accountable for any damage caused
embraces new, fair ways of manufacturing, transporting, selling, using and valuing clothing
it is built through the movement of collective power and global solidarity.

Who we are

We are people who make and wear clothes. Activists, social and environmental movements, civil society organizations, textile workers, trade unions, workers ‘ rights organizations and allies, united around the world to fight for a world that puts the needs of workers and communities at the center. Together we raise our voice for a just fashion system that respects workers ‘ rights and restores nature.

Our vision is a transition to a fair fashion system in which:

1. Decent work is guaranteed to everyone, regardless of the worker, location or job.

A just fashion system rests on dignity, justice and equality for all workers. All current and future workers have the right to safe, healthy and dignified working conditions, free from harassment, abuse and gender-based violence. Workers ‘ rights are respected throughout the supply chain-from production and sales to collection, sorting, distribution, repair and disposal of clothing. They apply to everyone, regardless of race, gender, class, age, sexual orientation, physical ability, migrant status, employment status, type of contract or workplace. Decent work is guaranteed today, during the transition and in the future.

Definitions

Decent work the International Labour Organization (ILO) defines productive work for all under conditions of freedom, equality, security and human dignity.
Just transition the process of ensuring that the transition to a low-carbon society is fair, inclusive and that none of the workers are left behind; the demand originated from the trade union movement and was confirmed in the 2015 Paris agreement on climate change.

2. Universal Social Protection provides everyone with a dignified and climate-resilient life.

Governments and companies are adapting jobs to protect workers from the direct consequences of environmental change. Everyone is entitled to sick leave, maternity benefits, severance pay, pension fund and unemployment benefits. Public budgets serve people by strengthening social protection, workers ‘ rights and living wage, rather than by financing social and environmental damage. Laws and binding agreements with brands (such as the international agreement on health and safety in the textile and clothing industries) ensure the responsibility of brands for the well-being and safety of workers.

Definitions

Social protection A combination of workers ‘rights including wages, working conditions and health and safety at work, social security (including sick leave, maternity benefits, severance pay, pension fund and unemployment benefits) and public services (including education, health care and training) that improve workers’ lives and protect them from losing their income in times of vulnerability.
International agreement on health and safety in the textile and clothing industry (The International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry): a legal obligation between brands and unions, established after the tragic collapse of the Rana Plaza Building in Bangladesh in 2013. The agreement ensures that factories supplying brands to signatories are regularly inspected and that identified safety risks are removed.
Binding agreements with brands Agreements that are legally binding, negotiated, implemented and signed by at least one brand and local unions, making the brand(s) responsible for working conditions and workers ‘ rights in its supply chain.

3. The existence of the worker takes precedence over the profit of the company.

A fair fashion system enriches the lives of workers, their families and local communities. The wealth of industry is distributed fairly, prioritising the needs of people and the environment over the profits of management and shareholders. Wages sufficient for Life allow to meet basic needs and create savings. Companies and their owners pay a fair share of taxes along the entire supply chain, enabling social protection for all and adaptation to climate change. Public and private investment funds are directed Beyond companies that profit to the detriment, and support organizations that embrace new models of care, equality and Justice. Companies include in their procurement practices the costs of living wages, social protection and climate adaptation. The transition to a fair fashion system is funded fairly. Companies and countries historically responsible for the climate crisis bear the costs of adaptation and mitigation.

Definitions

Management: Senior corporate employees, such as directors or CEOs, who run and manage the company.
Shareholders: An individual or company that invests in a company in exchange for partial ownership and potential financial return.
Supply practices: The way companies cooperate and purchase from their suppliers, including payment terms, deadlines and order quantities. Poor purchasing practices, such as exploitative prices, last-minute cancellations, changes or discounts, and unpaid invoices, negatively affect workers ‘ rights by reducing wages and increasing pressure on production and unpaid overtime.
Customization: Taking measures to prepare for, reduce vulnerability and strengthen resilience to the consequences of climate change.
Mitigation: Taking measures to reduce or prevent emissions in order to limit the severity of global warming.

4. Everyone has the right to participate in decisions that affect their life.

The people who make, sell, collect, sort, distribute, repair and dispose of clothing have a Democratic seat at the table. We organize freely into independent trade unions and social movements to negotiate better working conditions and protection against climate risks. Workers have a greater right to manage their place of work and determine their own working conditions. Education about their rights empowers workers to defend and advance them. Training on climate and environmental challenges helps workers to participate in decisions about the future of industry at all levels. Fair redistribution of profits and respect for planetary boundaries are made possible through strong labour laws, collective agreements and social dialogue. Everyone can express their opinion without fear or repression.

Definitions

Collective agreements: Transparent, binding and empowering agreements between employers and workers on working conditions negotiated by trade unions.
Social dialogue: How workers can promote their interests and improve working conditions through negotiations, consultation and exchange of information between representatives of workers, employers and government on social and economic policy.

5. The production of clothing meets the needs of everyone with respect for planetary boundaries.

Our planet cannot withstand the current model of mass production based on intensive resource utilization and short-term trends. In a fair fashion system, fashion brands are responsible for the entire lifecycle of their products – from raw materials to the end of use. Quality and valued clothing is designed to remain in use and is rarely discarded. Brands finance waste management systems and protect workers and communities from the environmental and health consequences of textile waste. The use of resources is determined by actual global and local needs. Fair clothing production goes beyond just reducing the climate and ecological footprint it actively fosters a renewable relationship with the Earth and all the species that live on it.

6. Decent work, job security and wages rise as production volume decreases

Clothing prices reflect the actual cost of labor, leading to an increase in wages to living wage levels and a decrease in overtime and production volume.” Slower production models form the basis of a fair fashion system, reducing gas emissions, stopping global warming and restoring biodiversity. Governments are jointly developing plans to transform the garment manufacturing sector. All changes are carefully negotiated with workers and their unions to prevent abrupt job losses, job closures and income insecurity. Wage guarantee, social protection and alternative employment routes ensure greater workplace security. Workers receive timely notice of job closures and are entitled to severance pay. Responsible departure plans ensure that no one is left behind.

Retraining and additional training opportunities provide workers with safer, more climate-resilient jobs or alternative employment as the industry adapts to climate change. Trade relations and international support help producing countries develop their own economic strength in other sectors, thus enabling global fairness in creating new green jobs. Global brands, suppliers, investors and governments share responsibility for job preservation by securing long-term procurement contracts and re-training opportunities.

Definitions

Planetary boundaries: Nine interconnected systems that support life and regulate the stability of the planet. Staying within these boundaries prevents irreversible ecological changes.
Severance: Financial package to which workers are entitled when their employment relationship is terminated against their will, e.g. due to the closure of the workplace or the abolition of the workplace.

7. Companies are liable for any damage they cause.

Voluntary commitments will not bring justice; legally binding global rules will. A fair fashion system makes companies legally and financially liable for any damage they cause directly or indirectly. Under the law, companies ‘ duty to workers extends throughout the entire supply chain and the entire lifecycle of their products. The responsibility is broad, making fashion brands jointly responsible for the operation of their suppliers, no matter where their headquarters are located. All brands regularly assess their supply chain to identify and prevent human rights risks and to correct any violations. Mandatory transparency laws facilitate oversight of companies ‘ claims, policies, and business practices.

A just fashion system not only prevents future harm; it repairs past injustices and corrects global inequalities of power. Fashion brands pay reparations for historical injustices against workers and correct any occurrence of illegal treatment, including current and future violations of workers ‘ rights and damages caused by inappropriate adaptation. Any worker can easily seek justice without fear of retribution. National labor inspections are well funded to effectively monitor the fashion industry and ensure that all companies comply with the law.

Definitions

Inappropriate adjustment: adaptation measures that increase workers ‘ vulnerability, exposure, or risk of climate breakdown, rather than reducing it.

8. Clothing is valued with respect for the people who made it.

Clothing meets all our needs – individual, collective, functional, emotional and creative – rather than the for-profit goals of companies. Changes in production, universal decent wages, and a developed sharing economy increase the availability of sustainable fashion options. Wardrobes are slowly shaped by ethically produced clothing that is valued and precious. Clothes are re-worn, repaired, resold, exchanged, donated, upgraded or recycled. Tailoring services, clothing exchanges, second-hand shops and libraries, repair workshops and clothing care education help keep clothes in use as long as possible. Advertising, social media and fashion publications promote new aspirations: longevity and high quality of workmanship instead of cheap, transient trends. Marketing that encourages the exploitation of workers and the destruction of the environment is prohibited. Slower and deliberate consumption releases energy for joint action and community living. We see ourselves as much more than a consumer. We value clothing as a form of cultural and personal expression and respect the work that created them.

9. Fair fashion thrives through global solidarity and collective action.

Solidarity is the thread that connects the people who make and wear clothes. Our collective strength lies in organizing unions, supporting labor struggles, pressuring brands and governments to support fair fashion, and rejecting a culture of one-time consumption. Community building, mutual assistance and skills sharing strengthen resilience in our connected fight for social and climate justice. Each individual action makes a difference, but we are stronger when we act together. Change does not begin in meeting rooms it begins with US: manufacturers and wearers of clothing. Our collective future is in our hands. Vote for a fair fashion future. Sign the manifesto and commit to building a world where people and planet come before profit.

To comment on the manifesto click here.