Levi Strauss & Co pledges three million dollars to Covid-19 relief efforts

Levi Strauss & Co has committed three million dollars to help Covid-19 relief efforts, with the funds focusing primarily on employees, community partners and supply chain workers.

As part of the initiative, the company is working with partner organisations in a number of sourcing countries to provide a series or grants focused on public health support and food security for factory workers.

Garment workers in Bangladesh, the world's second largest garment exporter behind China, have already been massively impacted by Covid-19. According to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), over three billion dollars worth of orders have been cancelled or put on hold by fashion brands since the outbreak, with many workers going unpaid.

Levi Strauss & Co is donating medical-grade masks - almost 10,000 so far - to hospitals around the world and is “exploring what’s possible from both a manufacturing and innovation perspective” in terms of providing more personal protective equipment (PPE).

The company has also launched a 3:1 Employee Giving Campaign that has so far raised more than 160,000 dollars to support organisations fighting the pandemic.

“This is just the beginning, and we will keep you updated as our company response develops. I know we are asking a great deal of all of you, and as always, you are rising to the challenge - demonstrating your flexibility and commitment to our brands and consumers,” Levi Strauss & Co CEO Chip Bergh wrote in a letter to company employees. “Your response during this time continually renews my optimism that we will successfully navigate this crisis, as we have so many others in our 167-year history.”

Photo credit: Levi Strauss & Co, Facebook