The disaster took place in April last year when the building collapsed leaving 1,130 people dead and many more injured. The building housed four garment factories, employing an estimated 5,000 workers.
Primark will be paying out to those who were injured as well as the families of the victims. A spokesperson for the high street retailer spoke to WWD today to explain the situation:
“With the first anniversary of Rana Plaza fast approaching, we are determined to meet this responsibility to workers in our supply chain. We are therefore pleased to be in a position to now press ahead with payments…We have [already] paid short-term financial assistance equivalent to nine months wages to all 3,600 Rana Plaza workers, most of whom were making clothes for our competitors.”
The retail giant is an extremely popular presence on the British high street, however it faced heavy criticism at the time of the disaster with many protests staged outside its UK stores, prompting it to take responsibility for its actions.
In addition to the cash remuneration that Primark has committed, they will also be paying another $1 million to the workers through the Rana Plaza Trust Fund to which they have already donated $2 million.
