Jeff Cohen
CEO
Fruit of the Loom

March 20, 2025

Dear Mr. Cohen:

We, the undersigned organizations, write to express our deep concern over Fruit of the Loom’s recent decision to close two unionized apparel factories in Honduras: Jerzees Nuevo Día in Choloma and Confecciones Dos Caminos in Villanueva. This decision, which follows the closure by Fruit of the Loom of other unionized facilities in the country in recent years, raises serious concerns about your company’s commitment to labor rights and freedom of association. Instead of building on your prior commitment to worker rights in Honduras, your company appears to be adopting a lower-standard sourcing strategy similar to those of less responsible brands in the industry.

These factories are more than just workplaces. They represent your company’s commitment to worker rights after a hard-fought campaign by students and labor rights organizations. In 2009, Fruit of the Loom took a historic step by agreeing to open Jerzees Nuevo Día after previously shuttering a unionized facility (Jerzees de Honduras) in the same town and rehiring many of the same workers it had laid off. At the time, Fruit of the Loom received international recognition for its commitment to ethical sourcing and its leadership in the industry. Now, that legacy is at risk.

As organizations dedicated to human and labor rights, we find it truly alarming that Fruit of the Loom is on a path to eliminate all of its unionized garment factories in Honduras while chasing lower-cost production in places with a high risk of labor rights abuses. We are calling on Fruit of the Loom to stand by the workers who make its clothes and halt the closure of Jerzees Nuevo Día and Confecciones Dos Caminos, and instead to commit to maintaining operations in unionized factories and ensuring workers’ right to organize without fear of retaliation. 

We request a prompt response outlining any forthcoming commitments Fruit of the Loom will make to protect union jobs in Honduras. Any updates or information that you send to us will help inform our forthcoming outreach to retailers of Fruit of the Loom products. We sincerely hope Fruit of the Loom will honor its stated principles and take immediate action to return to its stated commitments to upholding freedom of association.

Sincerely,

Arise Chicago
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre
Calan Institute for Transterritorial Justice (CATRA)
Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES)
Corporate Accountability Lab
Ethical Consumer Research Association
Global Labor Justice
Green America
Jobs With Justice
Labour Behind the Label
Latin America Working Group
Make the Road New Jersey
Maquila Solidarity Network
Maquiladora Health & Safety Support Network
National Center for Law and Economic Justice (NCLEJ)
Partners for Dignity & Rights
People & Planet
Popular Democracy
Rights CoLab
Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia
Students for International Labor Solidarity
The Action Lab
The Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO)
Unifor
United Steelworkers
War on Want
Workers United-SEIU