Spain’s Zara and Bershka Fashion Brand Maker Inditex seeing Workers Return after Coronavirus Furlough

WORKERS at Inditex’s 10 logistics centres in Spain, which are used for the worldwide distribution of their products, returned to work today (April 13).

The country has seen a slight loosening of State of Alarm measures, after people in ‘non-essential’ industries were told to stay at home for a fortnight to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Union representatives claimed that work levels at the Inditex logistics centres were roughly half of those before the onset of the pandemic, due to a reduced work rota.

The new shift system meant employees working either doing half-days or just two or three shifts a week in order to reduce contact between themselves.

Rather than entering the facilities all at once, shift workers had staggered entries and exits and wore masks and gloves while maintaining two metre distances from colleagues.

Meanwhile, just three of Inditex’s 13 factories were back at work, making medical supplies like scrubs to help in Spain’s fight against the coronavirus.

A trade unionist said that no clothing was being produced bearing some of famous Inditex brand names like Zara and Bershka.

Inditex, who also have the Massimo Dutti brand in their line-up, does not disclose the proportion of its range that is made in Spain, but estimates suggest that it accounts for around half of its total worldwide production.

Inditex has roughly half of its stores still open around the world, and its offering some big discounts on their websites, as it seeks to clear winter stock.

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Written by

Alex Trelinski

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