By Clare Kermond
A FAMILY-OWNED knitting business in inner Melbourne has become the latest label to sign up to a national campaign promoting ethically produced fashion.
Otto and Spike, a 40-year-old business in Brunswick, joins big names such as Lisa Ho and Ginger & Smart in being accredited by Ethical Clothing Australia.
The accreditation process involving tracking all the subcontractors involved in producing garments for a label, checking that everyone is working under award conditions and wages.
Accredited labels can then use the ECA trademark as part of their marketing campaign.
ECA's national co-ordinator, Emer Diviney, said accredited brands were better placed to capture a slice of the growing market for sustainable and ethical fashion.
Clothing is an industry widely supplied by home workers, often earning just $6 an hour.
''The further down the supply chain you are, the less people are paid,'' Tom Clarke, ECA's communications co-ordinator, said.