Italian law enforcement officials conducted a major operation on Wednesday, December 4, targeting the headquarters of thirteen prominent luxury fashion companies. The action was part of an ongoing investigation into alleged labour exploitation within the network of subcontractors used by the high-end fashion industry.
Operation Targets Major Fashion Houses
The Carabinieri labour police unit in Milan led the operation, with support from officers in the cities of Florence, Parma, and Varese. According to judicial documents reviewed by Reuters, police visited the offices of the brands to formally request the handover of documents related to their corporate governance and supply-chain control mechanisms.
The list of companies that received document production orders is a who's who of global luxury: Dolce & Gabbana, Gianni Versace, Prada, Adidas Italy, Off-White Operating, Missoni, Ferragamo, Givenchy Italia, Alexander McQueen Italia, Guccio Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent Manifatture, Cris Conf. (Pinko), and Coccinelle.
It is crucial to note that none of these thirteen companies is currently under formal investigation. Furthermore, prosecutors have not sought to impose court-appointed administration on any of them at this stage.
Connection to Wider Probe into Chinese Workshops
These thirteen brands were drawn into the wider probe following dozens of searches conducted at Chinese-owned workshops in Italy. Those earlier searches led Milan prosecutors to request or impose judicial administration on six other high-end fashion groups over the past two years, a measure that has tarnished the image of several major industry names.
During those workshop raids, police discovered garments and subcontracting paperwork linked to the thirteen labels named on Wednesday. The quantities of their products found were reportedly smaller, which is why prosecutors opted for document requests rather than immediate court-appointed administration for these firms.
Prosecutors Aim to Assess Compliance Models
The purpose of the document requests, as stated in the judicial files, is to allow prosecutors to evaluate the extent of the thirteen companies' potential involvement in the use of exploited labour. A key focus will be assessing whether their existing compliance and governance models are robust enough to prevent such abuses within their supply chains.
The judicial documents outline a path forward for the brands. Once they provide the requested material, they will have the opportunity to address any identified shortcomings on their own initiative by adjusting their organisational and monitoring models.
However, the documents also make it clear that Milan prosecutors reserve the right to take further preventive or precautionary measures if the companies fail to adequately rectify any issues uncovered by the probe.
