Denim giant Levi Strauss & Co (LS&Co) is providing support to apparel supply chain workers as part of the company’s $3 million commitment to COVID-19 relief.
LS&Co President and CEO Chip Bergh said in a letter shared with employees on April 2 that the Levi Strauss Foundation (LSF) is working with multiple purchasing country partners Collaborate to help address the direct impact of COVID-19 on the apparel supply chain.
This will include a range of public health support for factory workers and funding for food security, with a particular focus on women who are “most vulnerable to economic shocks”.
Bergh added: “We are also working with industry stakeholders to explore options for a collective response to support workers during the crisis. We are sharing our experience in improving the well-being of garment workers. There is a long history of experience and methods and we will continue to do so during this period. No one company can respond to this devastating crisis alone, but I believe that by working together, we can make a difference.”
The $3 million in relief (for LS&Co employees, partners and supply chain workers) will benefit pioneering organizations working to respond to communities vulnerable to the impact of the pandemic, including Doctors Without Borders and Doctors Without Borders Support is provided by the International Women’s Human Rights Emergency Response Fund.
In addition to the more than 15 grants awarded in the first round, LSF will continue to support its current grantees and will also increase its efforts to supply LS&Co globally chain to provide additional support.
The company is also working to address personal protective equipment (PPE) shortages and plans to donate medical-grade masks it has stored for employee safety to hospitals around the world (so far donated nearly 10,000); and plans to explore other feasible assistance options from the perspective of manufacturing and innovation.
In addition, Bergh said that company employees also voluntarily stepped forward to sew medical staff who had no direct contact with suspected COVID-19 patients and community members who were at lower risk. Make homemade masks.
