It’s no secret that the impacts of the climate crisis will be felt most keenly by those in the global South. These are the parts of the world which, ironically, have contributed less per capita to the emissions that have accelerated the impacts of climate change, and also, are less able to cope with its potentially disastrous consequences.

But how do our actions — and more specifically, our consumption habits — tie in with their fates? Pretty significantly, it turns out. As we shop on the high street and in online boutiques, the clothes and shoes and accessories we buy are often made by workers in countries like Bangladesh, Indonesia and India. These factory workers and garment workers are set to be some of the most drastically impacted by rising temperatures. What role do big fashion brands, who contract out the labour for their wares to these people, many of whom are women — have to play? And as we follow that line of questioning — what responsibility do we, as consumers, take on?

More than 2.4 billion workers around the world deal with excessive heat every year, according to the International Labor Organization. In 2024, a report by the Global Labor Institute (GLI) in 2024 found that garment workers particularly are exposed to heat stress at very high rates. These impacts aren’t felt just on an individual and physiological level by workers, who experience the fatigue and health impacts of being exposed to high temperatures for long periods, while having to work in such conditions to support themselves — it can also have a significant impact on the fashion industry as a whole. The report found that nearly one million new apparel and footwear jobs will be “foregone” by 2030 in four key countries that provide manufacturing services to the world — Bangladesh, Cambodia, Pakistan and Vietnam — if they don’t take on significant changes to their work environments.

Ayesha Barenblat, the CEO and founder of Remake, an initiative that advocates for garment workers in the textiles industry, has been on the frontline of improving conditions and facilitating their rights. She tells The Everywoman that heat stress is a growing concern for the women that the organisation has spoken to in factories in key manufacturing countries. “What we hear from our garment worker partners are things like, how [they] put wet towels on their heads as they’re walking to the factories, by the time we get there, those towels are bone dry,” she says. ‘There are more fainting episodes at factories. Often supervisors will deny them drinking water because if you drink water, then you’re going to go to the bathroom more, and you’re not going to meet your incentive targets. There are real life effects from the climate crisis being felt as we speak.”

Many workers in garment factories work on productivity commissions, and can be expected to produce up to 1,000 units of a piece a day. The fatigue that sets in during periods of excessive heat in a work environment then directly impacts their ability to work, and therefore, to provide for their families. Yet discussions about climate change in political and corporate spheres often remain disconnected from their reality. The chasm between the way that the climate crisis is discussed in international forums and its actual effects is vast. “When it comes to workers, it’s less about all the fancy words used at COP or wherever — ‘just transitions’ or ‘ecosystem collapse,’” Barenblat says. “You literally have to start at the point of, ‘Is it hot?’ Yes. ‘Is it feeling hotter than ever?’ Yes.”

The problem is that many factories in the global South are not in a financial position to invest in cooling systems, allow breaks during the hottest parts of the day, or take on other measures to protect workers. Many work on debt, and are not in positions to put money into long-term projects where the cost is an upfront investment. Meanwhile, fashion brands, which outsource production to these factories, wield disproportionate power but evade accountability for labor conditions.

This ties back into the unequal power systems entrenched into the way the fashion industry functions, where manufacturers, who often operate in less socioeconomically well-off countries, have an unequal distribution of power compared to fashion brands who contract their work.

As the world saw in tragedies like the Rana Plaza fire of 2013, where 1,138 people were killed in their factory workplace, the industry’s negligence can cause direct harm — and allow the big players to avoid director accountability. Fashion brands are able to keep the realities of work practices at an arm’s length — they contract work to small and medium-sized factories rather than employing workers directly, thus maintaining a calculated distance from the harsh conditions in which their products are made.

But from a cynical perspective, if productivity is being impacted by the effects of heat, is there more of a chance that fashion brands are going to take this problem more seriously — rather than evading responsibility? “Yes, and no,” says Barenblat. “The idea is certainly to make that case. But the question is, will the case be made urgently enough? Because climate impacts are here now.”

While adaptation is a key concern for workers, fashion brands are more interested in mitigation strategies. This, for Barenblat is a direct result of the climate conversation not prioritising the voices of workers and those on the frontline. “It’s all too theoretical,” she says. “Which is why a lot of [Remake]’s energy is focused on the storytelling and narrative of really putting a human centered lens to this conversation.”

The fashion industry must take responsibility, but as consumers, we also play a role. We can demand transparency from brands, support ethical fashion initiatives, and push for industry-wide reform. “What we’re going to need is manufacturers and buyers stepping up as a collective international accord,” says Barenblat. “Nothing gets achieved alone.”