"On 5 January 2021 the decomposing body of Jeyasre Kathiravel, a 21-year-old Dalit woman who was an employee of Natchi, then an H&M Group supplier, was found on a strip of farmland a few miles from her village after she failed to return home following a shift on New Year's Day. A man named V Thangadurai, her supervisor, was arrested and put in police custody, where he confessed to Kathiravel's rape and murder."
"Her fellow workers described Thangadurai as a predator, who sexually harassed and intimidated Kathiravel with impunity for months before brutally escalating his actions. She had complained but did not know how to stop him. Jeyasre Kathiravel's mother, Muthulakshmi, holds her daughter's identity card at her home on the edge of Dindigul. Photograph: Sivaram V/The Guardian Other women faced similar problems. Selvi, a tailor who joined the factory in 2020, recalls workers loudly sobbing or quietly struggling as a result of the regular production tortures."
"After the killing, and by the time international workers' rights organisations such as the Asia Floor Wage Alliance (Afwa) and Global Labor Justice (GLJ) were involved, H&M had dropped Natchi, a subsidiary of the larger Eastman Exports, as a supplier. I never thought the situation of my factory would change. We women were never respected. Now we are no longer harassed Jeyalakshmi"
Workers at Natchi Apparels experienced pervasive sexual harassment, intimidation, and production pressure that left many women traumatised. On 5 January 2021 Jeyasre Kathiravel, a 21-year-old Dalit employee, was found raped and murdered after failing to return from a shift. Her supervisor confessed while fellow workers reported ongoing predatory behaviour and unsuccessful complaints. International advocacy and investigation led H&M to cut ties with Natchi and to involvement by Asia Floor Wage Alliance and Global Labor Justice. A year-long Justice for Jeyasre campaign and corroborating investigations enabled the Tamil Nadu Textile and Common Labour Union to negotiate an agreement with Eastman.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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