No more survivors will be pulled from the wreckage of the building collapse in Bangladesh that killed at least 381 people working in garment factories.
The building housed thousands of garment manufacturing workers in the country's capital, Dhaka, a city containing thousands of similar factories.
These garment businesses supply the world with cheap clothing, and it's possible an item you are wearing now, or have in your closet at home, was made by one of these workers.
The building collapse is the worst disaster of its kind the industry has seen - but it is not the first. Last year an estimated 112 people died in a factory fire in Tazreen.
There are parallels between the two stories. Despite warnings of danger (a fire alarm in Tazreen and a cracks in the wall in Dhaka), workers were reportedly ordered back to work. Barred windows and blocked fire exits prevented people escaping.
The Bangladeshi garment industry is known for poor working conditions, unsafe and unhygienic environments, low wages and exploitation.
Kalpona Akter, executive director of the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity, told Bloomberg about half the nation's garment factories did not meet work-safety standards.
Oxfam Australia says just seeing a “Made in Bangladesh” or “Made in China” label on your clothing is reason enough to be concerned.
“Bad conditions, low wages, unsafe factories are really commonplace right across Asia,” says Daisy Gardener, Oxfam Australia's Labour Rights Coordinator.
“So unfortunately even just knowing a garment is made in Bangladesh or another country in Asia, really indicates that you really need to think how was the garment being made and under what conditions.”
But the clothes are cheap, so western companies buy in bulk, and western consumers chase the bargains.
Among the Australian companies who use Bangladeshi suppliers are retail giants Big W, Cotton On and Pacific Brands.
There are numerous others, according to Oxfam, but it's nearly impossible to know exactly which, and how much of a supply chain is in Bangladesh, or indeed any other Asian nation.
Big W, which uses several Bangladeshi suppliers, says it is “confident” that its ethical sourcing policy is effective.
“We certainly weren't involved in any of the companies in the building last week,” Big W spokesman Benedict Brooke told SBS.
“We've checked every time there's been an incident.”
“Big W only works with a small number of respected clothing suppliers in Bangladesh with whom we have a direct relationship and oversight of their operations,” Mr Brooke said.
Woolworths Limited, which owns Big W, sent a representative to the factories to monitor working conditions, but it did not publicise its list of suppliers, said Mr Brooke.
The company was also a signatory to the UN Global Compact and an "active member" of the Global Social Compliance Program, he said.
A spokeswoman from clothing retailer of 'basics' and sleepwear, Cotton On, said the company has a "very disciplined code of conduct."
"We do have an ethical auditing team that exists on the ground," she said.
The spokesperson said this auditing team is locally-based and employed directly by Cotton On.
Oxfam would like companies to go further than in-house auditing and increase industry transparency.
“One thing that we ask companies to do is to actually release a list of where all supply companies are located," said Ms Gardener.
"That means that organisations like Oxfam or international unions can actually go in and talk to the workers in those factories and do our own independent audits and checks.
Global brands such as Nike, Adidas and Puma have released their list of suppliers as requested by Oxfam.
In 2010, Oxfam requested the same of Australian giant Pacific Brands as part of a call for greater industry transparency.
But Pacific Brands declined, telling SBS it was because supplier details are "a source of competitive advantage."
"Oxfam's main reason for wanting this is to facilitate independent audits. We already conduct independent audits," he said.
The spokesperson told SBS most of its items were made in China, Indonesia and Fiji, with less than one per cent manufactured in Bangladesh.
"Our sole Bangladesh supplier has more than one factory that manufactures garments for us and we do audit them all," he said.
The company directly employs over 200 people in Asia to look after “their interests” with suppliers - that is, quality of product and social compliance.
The company - like many of its Australian counterparts - has an ethical social sourcing policy it requires suppliers to abide by.
If a supplier is found to be in breach and does not remedy that breach, Pacific Brands will cease to use them.
The policy had been applied several times, the Pacific Brands spokesperson said.
“In line with our objective to remain a supplier of choice it has become paramount to choose, acknowledge, promote and develop our suppliers so that there is alignment with our expectations of ethical behaviour,” reads Pacific Brands' Code of Conduct for manufacturers and suppliers.
“Our intent is to engage with suppliers of our goods and service to ensure that basic labour and human rights are met, environmental impacts are managed and we behave ethically.”
Ms Gardener says these codes of conduct are good, but don't go far enough.
“What we really need to see is the industry come together and really have more independent inspections and common goals in the industry,” she said.
“There's an International Building and Fire Safety Agreement that has been agreed by international labour rights organisations, Bangladeshi unions and two companies have also signed on so far.”
“This safety agreement is so important because it includes independent building inspections, workers' rights training and also a really critical review of safety standards across the industry in Bangladesh.”
Concerned consumer should contact the brands, rather than boycott products from the source country, Ms Gardener said.
“If you're purchasing the garment, have a look at the label, note that it's made in Bangladesh or China or Vietnam and then write to the company on their public Facebook or write them a letter and say 'Look, I've just purchased your garment, I like your garment, but I'm really concerned about workers' rights, and this is an issue I'm talking about with my friends.'”
“Companies really do care about what consumers think and so it's important to purchase the product but also speak your mind about how you want your products to be made and under what conditions.”
Do you know where your clothes were made? Are you concerned about the working conditions of the factories that supply to big Australian companies? Tell us in the comments below.
