Levi Strauss & Co.

A signatory to the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs), Levi’s displays a commitment to drive gender equality and women’s empowerment across its value chain. However, it has not stated which individuals in the company are responsible for its gender efforts nor established a gender strategy that goes beyond a supply chain focus. Since achieving its target in 2019 to support the financial empowerment of more than 200,000 workers through its Worker Well-being initiative, Levi’s has not disclosed any other gender-specific, time-bound targets. No information was found regarding whether the company engages its own employees, such as performing surveys, or external stakeholders on gender issues.

Levi’s has a gender-responsive grievance mechanism that considers the specific needs of its women employees, for instance allowing concerns to be reported to someone other than the direct supervisor via a telephone line, as well as ensuring non-retaliation and protection of the aggrieved party. The company also requires suppliers to have a grievance mechanism in place for their workers to raise concerns, which reflects an understanding of gender roles and the inequalities women face in the supply chain.

The company screens for gender-related issues among its suppliers as part of its audit processes, including sexual harassment, gender-based violence, and discrimination against women based on their pregnancy and marital status. It also requires corrective action to be taken if these issues are identified.

There is little information available with regard to how Levi’s considers the fair representation of women in the workplace. While the company maintains gender balance – 40-60% women – among its senior executives (44%), only four out of 12 board members are women (33%). No information was found on the gender balance of the company’s senior management, middle management or overall workforce. Neither were details available regarding the gender composition of its workforce across occupational function or the gender breakdown of employee turnover or absenteeism rates.

In the supply chain, the company addresses the systemic discrimination that women face by requiring its suppliers to have a policy in place that explicitly protects married and pregnant women workers. This includes prohibiting suppliers from requesting pregnancy tests, asking applicants about their pregnancy status or identifying pregnancy as a negative element in factory hiring, salary, benefits, advancement, discipline, termination or retirement practice.

Though no details were available about recognition agreements with local trade unions currently in place, Levi’s expects suppliers to respect the rights of workers to establish and join organisations as well as prohibits intimidation, harassment, retaliation and violence against trade union members and representatives.

No information was found regarding whether Levi’s actively procures from women-owned businesses or takes specific actions to increase the procurement spend directed to these businesses.

While Levi’s reports on its gender pay gap in the United Kingdom, thereby complying with national regulation, no information was found regarding how the company addresses the global gender pay gap to ensure its women employees around the world are fairly compensated for their work. Moreover, the company does not disclose a global policy of paid primary or secondary carer leave, and no details were available regarding whether it promotes employees’ return to work after leave. In terms of other family-friendly benefits, Levi’s states that employees receive subsidised childcare and adult care, but there is no evidence to suggest this is a global policy.

In the supply chain, no information was found regarding whether Levi’s requires suppliers to extend their workers a formal contract or a living wage. Nor was there information regarding how the company considers workers’ unpaid care burden by requiring suppliers to provide paid carer leave, childcare or other family support.

No information was found to suggest that Levi’s covers additional costs surrounding maternal and mental health services or the sexual and reproductive health needs of its women employees.

In the supply chain, the company requires suppliers to provide their workers with a safe and healthy work environment, including access to drinking water and personal protective equipment as well as training in proper chemical handling and emergency procedures. It also requires suppliers to have a health and safety committee in place to discuss the common health issues affecting workers. However, the company does not collect data on the gender composition of workers’ injuries, fatalities, turnover or absenteeism rates.

Levi’s has made a public commitment to providing gender-responsive health information and services in its supply chain. While there are no details to indicate that Levi’s requires all of its suppliers to have an on-site clinic, the company is currently cooperating with some suppliers to offer workers clinic services and provide access to health information and services, specifically regarding contraception and family planning as well as sexual and reproductive health training.

In the workplace, Levi’s seeks to prevent violence and harassment and asserts this by ensuring that its employees do not tolerate or commit harassment of any kind. It states that this will lead to disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment. The company does not appear to provide training on violence and harassment, neither was any information found regarding the company’s effective remedy to violence and harassment grievances in the workplace, such as not requiring private arbitration or silencing agreements.

In the supply chain, Levi’s requires its suppliers to ensure that no factory managers or supervisors engage in or allow sexual harassment. It also requires its suppliers to have a harassment policy in place, made publicly available to all workers in relevant languages, and that the policy be gender-sensitive, proactively identifying factors that impact women and men differently and seeking to equalise them. In Cambodia, Levi’s provides support to its suppliers to prevent violence and harassment in the supply chain through Safe Workplaces, Safe Communities, an initiative led by CARE Cambodia that aims to reduce gender-based violence and sexual harassment in workplaces and communities primarily in the garment, hospitality and tourism industries.

Levi’s discloses no information regarding how it addresses non-discriminatory practices in marketing and advertising, for example by committing to avoid harmful gender stereotypes or ensuring gender-responsive communications and engagement with its customers to support gender equality and women’s empowerment.

While Levi’s encourages employees to take an active role in their communities, no details were found regarding how the company drives gender equality and women’s empowerment in the communities where it operates.

Levi’s has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by upholding all orders, including paying in full for all finished, ready-to-ship orders and in-progress orders, as well as committing $3 million to relief efforts with a focus on employees, community partners and supply chain workers. The company has launched a 3:1 employee giving campaign that has raised more than $160,000 to date in support of a wide range of organisations that are filling critical needs related to the pandemic. These range from global, such as the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund and Give2Asia, which protects frontline health workers in countries across Asia, to more local initiatives, such as Convivial, which supports refugees and asylum seekers in Brussels, and Spark* SF Public Schools, which provides emergency meals for schoolchildren in San Francisco.