FAQS
For shoppers
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Ethical Clothing Australia is an accreditation body that works with local textile, clothing and footwear (TCF) businesses that manufacture in Australia. Ethical Clothing Australia ensures that the business and their supply chains are adhering to local workplace laws.
We audit the entire supply chain from design to dispatch ensuring that workers are being paid correctly, receiving the right entitlements and are working in a safe environment.
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Our accreditation program remit specifically focuses on the rights and entitlements of Australian garment workers. We audit the entire supply chain from design to dispatch, ensuring that workers are being paid correctly, receiving their legal entitlements and working in a safe environment. Environmental factors are not a focus of our audit.
Whilst our remit is defined by the above, many of our accredited businesses are addressing other areas and are doing incredible work to address sustainability and environmental concerns.
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The remit of our accreditation program is focused on the rights and entitlements of local workers in the textile, clothing and footwear industry. However, some accredited businesses use only vegan materials. Check their website listings for more information.
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An Ethical Clothing Australia accreditation is not a ‘blanket endorsement’ of an individual business.
Our accreditation program covers textile, clothing and footwear manufacturing and associated value adding functions that take place in Australia. The Ethical Clothing Australia trademark can ONLY be displayed on products that are made in Australia. You can find out more about the use of our trade mark here.
However, if a business manufactures some of their products overseas, that does not disqualify a business from undergoing the accreditation process for their garments that are made in Australia.
How do you know if a product is accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia? Look for our swing tag when shopping in-person, and look for the trade mark and in the product description in online stores. You can browse all of our accredited brands here.
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Outworkers (who are also sometimes described as homeworkers) conduct their work outside of a factory or formal work environment. They usually work from home, or at a location not normally classified as a business premises (for example, a garage attached to residential premises). Due to the hidden nature of this kind of work, it is hard to determine the exact number of outworkers in Australia.
Many outworkers in Australia are migrant women who come from non-English speaking backgrounds and often do not understand their rights as Australian workers. They make clothing for Australian designers, fashion retailers and uniform suppliers. They often experience unethical working conditions and unreasonable expectations such as:
- Long working hours
- Not receiving the legal award rate of pay
- Can be paid by piece which places a significant amount of pressure to work extensive hours and produce more garments
- Irregular work and insecure income
- Poor working conditions, which can lead to work-related injuries
- May not receive their lawful industrial entitlements, such as paid annual leave, personal leave and superannuation
There is a widespread reluctance from outworkers to speak up about these issues, due to the fear of losing work. Such concerns are exacerbated by the low incomes that many outworkers live on. While some workers may prefer to work from home because it enables them to generate an income while meeting family responsibilities, some outworkers struggle to get work elsewhere and have little choice but to work from home at rates set by the business.
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Under Ethical Clothing Australia’s Code of Practice, all accredited businesses are considered to be ‘manufacturers’. However, different kinds of businesses operate in different ways. To assist with publicly promoting accredited manufacturers, Ethical Clothing Australia breaks this information down into three categories: brands, manufacturers and value adders.
When we refer to a ‘brand’, we are talking about businesses that are manufacturing products to sell under their own business name.
A ‘manufacturer’ may not sell direct to consumers – it may only take on purchase orders and procurement contracts, manufacturing products for other businesses to sell. Manufacturers are accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia and undergo the same compliance audits to ensure that the rights of their workers are being upheld.
To be eligible as a ‘value adder’, a business must currently provide a value adding service (for example, embroidery or screen printing) to the industry. They cannot only be value adding to their own products.
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Our accreditation program maps a business’s Australian supply chain from design to dispatch including initial design, pattern making, cut, make, trim and all value adding services. However, this audit process doesn’t look at the production of yarn or fabric unless it has been custom made in Australia and is part of the supply chain.
If you are interested in the fabrics or yarns that a business is using, please search for their Ethical Clothing Australia website listing and contact the business directly.
For TCF businesses
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Ethical Clothing Australia is an accreditation program, not a membership. Businesses are audited and accredited for one year and must pay a fee that covers the cost of the compliance audit. To be accredited for the next year, the business must go through the process again.
Businesses can’t purchase an accreditation; it must be earned by complying with Australian labour laws.
Any of the businesses you see listed in the ethical brand or manufacturer pages on our website are businesses that are accredited with Ethical Clothing Australia and not part of a membership program.
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As an accreditation body, we can only provide direct manufacturing referrals to businesses that are accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia. This way we can ensure fair and legal procedures are being followed by the individual businesses, as per our accreditation program and in accordance with the TCF Award and other relevant legislation.
Please feel free to explore the Accredited Manufacturers listed on our website and contact those you feel may be suitable for your requirements.
We are always very happy to work with brands and manufacturers towards Ethical Clothing Australia accreditation, and should you be currently or in due course be manufacturing locally and would like to find out more please get in touch so we can walk you through our accreditation information and take the Eligibility Quiz.
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Ethical Clothing Australia aims to assist private businesses, government bodies, and other organisations to procure Australian-made TCF products by connecting them with accredited manufacturers.
If you’re a procurement manager, you can find more information here. You can also explore the list of Accredited Manufacturers and contact those you feel may be suitable for your requirements.
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There are number of factors that determine a business’s eligibility for accreditation by Ethical Clothing Australia, first and foremost your business must be manufacturing TCF products in Australia. Complete our Eligibility Quiz to see if you’re eligible, and book a free, no-obligation chat with an Accreditation Program Advisor here.
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To be eligible for Ethical Clothing Australia accreditation your business must be manufacturing TCF products in-house or arranging the manufacture of TCF products with local suppliers. At the time of application for accreditation, your business should already be in the production stage, for example sampling alone does not qualify your business for accreditation.
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Our fees are dependent on the size of your individual business and its manufacturing operations. Learn more about our fee structure here.
The accreditation fee is invoiced annually at the time of your business’s renewal and will be based on the projection of your upcoming year’s manufacturing structure.
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Ethical Clothing Australia accreditation involves an annual compliance audit, which is important to ensure ongoing compliance. Your business’s accreditation period commences on the date that the initial annual fee is paid, and this will remain your business’s renewal date going forward. Accreditation renewal is dependent on payment of the annual fee and successful completion of the annual compliance audit each year.
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The compliance audit is carried out on our behalf by a Compliance Officer from the TCF Union, you can meet our Compliance and Outreach Team. The Accreditation Guidelines include a compliance audit overview, detailing what the Compliance Officer will work through with the applicant and its suppliers.
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There are a range of benefits to having your business accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia, you can read about these here.
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The timeframe will vary depending on the specific nature of the applicant’s manufacturing circumstances and the size of any supply chain. The length of time will also be dependent on the cooperation of the applicant and the supply chain participants. In practice, most smaller applications will be completed well within three to six months. For larger businesses with complex supply chains, the compliance work may take up to 12 months. For more information refer to the Accreditation Guidelines.
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As part of the annual compliance audit, all local suppliers within a business’s supply chain will be captured. As per the Accreditation Guidelines the primary business should inform their suppliers that the accreditation process does not require them to do anything above and beyond what their legal requirements already compel them to do.
Ethical Clothing Australia can work with businesses in your supply chain to address concerns and assist them to understand their obligations and requirements under the TCF Award and the accreditation process. The compliance audit is a collaborative process, designed to assist the business and its suppliers to achieve legal compliance.
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The use of our trade mark is limited to businesses that are accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia. The trade mark indicates that the business manufactures TCF products ethically in Australia and its manufacturing operations have undergone a thorough compliance audit in line with the TCF Award and other relevant legislation. Read more about trade mark usage here.
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The TCFAI Award is the relevant federal modern award for the Australian TCF industry. Along with the Fair Work Act 2009 and the National Employment Standards, the TCFAI Awards sets out the minimum conditions of employment, which TCF businesses must meet. Some state awards and other relevant legislation may also apply to the TCF industry. For more information refer to our resources page.
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Any TCF business that gives work out to a supplier or individual to manufacture TCF products is required by law to register with the Fair Work Commission’s TCF Industry Board of Reference (BOR). This must be done prior to the business giving out work. If a business is giving work out and is not registered with the BOR, it is in breach of the TCFAI Award.
Registration needs to be completed annually and a business must also supply a quarterly list detailing the suppliers and/or individuals that have been given work in that period. These quarterly lists need to be submitted within seven days from the end of February, May, August and November of each year.
Any of a business’s suppliers who give work out themselves also need to be registered with the BOR. Before giving work out to other suppliers and/or individuals who give out work themselves, a business should ask them to provide their BOR registration number.
For more information, check our resources page.
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As part of our annual compliance audit, numerous OH&S and WorkCover items are assessed. All Australian businesses must comply with OH&S and WorkCover requirements, it is important to note that laws and regulations vary from between states. For more information contact the Union here and/or your local WorkCover authority:
VIC – WorkSafe
NSW – SafeWork
NT – WorkSafe
ACT – WorkSafe
SA – WorkCover
Where can I find more information?
For more information visit our resources page or get in touch with our team.
For procurement professionals
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Ethical Clothing Australia aims to assist private businesses, government bodies, and other organisations to procure Australian-made TCF products by connecting them with Ethical Clothing Australia-accredited manufacturers. If you’re a procurement manager, you can find more information here. You can also explore the list of Accredited Manufacturers and contact those you feel may be suitable for your requirements.
For teachers and students
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You can sign up for our newsletter, follow us on socials and look out for our events.
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Yes, Ethical Clothing Australia is willing to provide comments and insights for your relevant studies if applicable to our accreditation program and mission. Please contact info@ethicalclothingaustralia.org.au for more information.
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Yes, Ethical Clothing Australia representatives are available to speak at relevant student events and seminars. Please reach out to info@ethicalclothingaustralia.org.au to find out more.
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Ethical Clothing Australia does not accept any unpaid work opportunities such as unpaid internships or volunteers. However, if you are a student who is required to complete a student placement as part of your degree we do accept these short-term student placements. Please reach out to info@ethicalclothingaustralia.org.au with details about your university study requirements.
Support local
Ethical Clothing Australia acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout the lands now known as Australia and recognise and celebrate their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples today.
We are a place free from discrimination, where diversity is celebrated and everyone belongs. We are committed to creating a safe and welcoming space for all.