In a first, two Bangladeshi factory owners and four of their employees will face homicide charges for the deaths of 112 workers in a fire that engulfed a factory in 2012.
The Bangladeshi garment industry has become increasingly lucrative: It is the world’s second largest after China and earns more than $20 billion a year.
But a series of deadly disasters — including the 2012 fire and a factory collapse in April that killed more than 1,100 workers — has exposed how harsh and unsafe working conditions are in the industry that employs 4 million Bangladeshis and provides clothing to major Western retailers.
Many Western brands are coming under intense pressure to take greater responsibility for the working conditions in the garment factories that churn out their highly profitable clothes.
The New York Times featured an extensive report on the murkiness and lack of accountability in the global supply chain for clothes Tuesday.
Police filed homicide charges on Dec. 22 against 13 people allegedly responsible for the lack of safety conditions at the factory and the arrest warrants were issued for six who police say have fled.
