Call for ban on jeans sandblasting

8 Sep 2011, 8:28 pm   -   By: Luke Waters
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The aid agency Oxfam is calling for a total ban on the importation of sand-blasted denim garments, Luke Waters reports.

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The aid agency Oxfam is calling for a total ban on the importation of sand-blasted denim garments.

The technique gives fabrics a distinctive 'washed out' appearance but is also blamed for illness and death among factory workers.

Many fashion companies have banned the practice of 'sandblasting', which has been attributed to respiratory illnesses including the life-threatening condition 'Silicosis'.

Unlike asbestosis, which in some cases took decades to emerge, these illnesses can be diagnosed within months.

Deaths have been recorded in numerous places around the globe as a result of sandblasting practices.

Oxfam Australia Executive Director Andrew Hewett says a pair of jeans purchased from a Just Group outlet in the past week is marketed clearly as being sandblasted.

The Just Group, which owns several well known labels including Just Jeans, Jay Jays, Portmans and Peter Alexander, declined to comment.

Instead it released a statement saying it is an ethical supplier and that it takes its obligations very seriously and that they do not work with suppliers who do not meet appropriate work conditions or standards.

Oxfam says it has met with the Just Group in an attempt to clarify its position on the issue of sandblasting, but is yet to gain a clear, unequivocal response, and is considering referring the matter to the CCC. 

You can also watch this video here:

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