The Worker Rights Issue Everyone At Fashion Week Should Be Talking About
The Fashion Worker Act could mean changes for models and creatives.
As the models cascaded down the runways of New York Fashion Week, a movement was continuing to grow behind the scenes. A bill introduced in the New York State Senate last year could mean changes in how models and creatives work with management and clients – and many of them used the industry's most visible time of year to talk about it.
The Fashion Worker's Act, endorsed by The Model Alliance, seeks to make the industry more equitable for models by imposing such rules as a 45-day limit on payments, not allowing agencies to overcharge for housing, ensuring health and safety checks on set and much more.
Modeling (and now influencing and content creation) has long been thought of as one of the most glamorous parts of the fashion business, but in many ways, this line of thinking has allowed for rampant exploitation. Many workers report not being paid for several months, not seeing contracts before they are signed, and having hidden fees taken out of their pay. Sara Ziff, the founder of The Model Alliance, told CBS News, "[Fashion Week] relies on the labor force of mostly young, immigrant girls, who are often working in debt to their management agencies." Their website also points out that the fashion industry is a $2.5 trillion global industry. Models and creatives are an integral piece of why it's so profitable.
The labor violations go beyond money as well. Models report issues such as sexual exploitation, pressure to lose or gain weight beyond what is healthy for them, and working hours well outside of their contracts. It doesn't matter how exciting it might be to be on a runway. Your workplace should be safe for everyone.
Right now, the bill is still in the New York State Legislature, and advocates are pushing for support in the upcoming months.
Why should you care?
We all participate in fashion whether we like it or not (please see this story about the origins of This Stuff). Many people touch our clothing in some way before it gets to us, and they deserve a positive work environment. Without the creatives, fashion loses its pulse, so in supporting their right to worker protections, we ensure that doesn't happen.
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This Stuff is a newsletter by me! fashion journalist, Alyssa Hardy. Three times a week, I unpack the ways our clothes impact the world through news, essays, interviews and more. Subscribe for free here and follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
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