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Owen Smith And ASOS Go Head-To-Head In Warehouse Working Conditions Debate

The MP hits back at ASOS' denial of "shocking" staff treatment.
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By 

Style Writer, The Huffington Post UK

MP Owen Smith and ASOS are engaged in a heated debate about its treatment of warehouse employees.

The Labour leadership candidate accused the fashion giant of “appalling” working conditions, which ASOS strongly denied - stating that Smith had never visited the premises.

Speaking to The Huffington Post UK on Friday 12 August, Smith said: “I would be more than happy to visit the warehouse at Barnsley and talk to workers there myself.

“The allegations against ASOS - that staff are having to work in shocking conditions with insecure hours - are incredibly serious and deserve proper attention.”

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The ASOS distribution centre in Barnsley, South Yorkshire
Rui Vieira/PA Archive

Earlier this week, Smith called for a parliamentary investigation over staff conditions at the ASOS warehouse in Barnsley, Yorkshire.

In an open letter to the the business, innovation and skills committee chairman Iain Wright MP, Smith said he was “concerned” that the online retailer could be “the new Sports Direct”.

“Having met with the GMB [a trade union helping to protect workers], I’m appalled at reports that – among others – staff there are having to face invasive surveillance, limited access to toilet facilities and random searches during lunch breaks,” he wrote.

“I also understand staff are being employed on what are effectively sub-zero hour contracts, where workers face little to no notice of the hours they’re expected to work. And where staff are turning up to work only to be told they’ve got no allocated hours.”

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Labour leadership candidate MP Owen Smith
Ben Birchall/PA Wire

These claims were denied by an ASOS spokesperson in an official statement to Vogue on Thursday 11 August.

“We were surprised to see these allegations from Owen given that it was the first we had heard from him and he’s never been inside the warehouse,” they said.

“We work incredibly hard with XPO (the logistics company that manages the site) to create a positive, supportive, healthy working environment for the team in Barnsley.

“As we have now said on the record several times before - we don’t do zero-hours contracts, people can take toilet and water breaks whenever they want, and we pay above minimum wage.”

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Models pose for an ASOS campaign
ASOS

Yesterday ASOS was named as the UK’s most reputable fashion retailer among consumers in a RepTrap list published on Thursday 11 August.

The list, compiled by the Reputation Institute and based on almost 5000 interviews ranked British high street retailers' reputations among the general public.

Rounding out the top three are Laura Ashley and Debenhams, followed by Marks & Spencer and Next in fourth and fifth place respectively.

The Huffington Post UK has reached out to ASOS for comment.

Before You Go

Owen Smith: 15 facts to know
He used to be a BBC producer(01 of15)
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Smith was a BBC radio producer for a decade, joining BBC Wales in 1992 - the same year his father also became editor of BBC Wales. "Colleagues recall an amiable but highly ambitious character," one BBC profile claims. His jobs included work on the flagship Radio 4 programme Today and the politics programme Dragon's Eye which broadcasts in Wales. (credit:Nick Ansell/PA Wire)
The Met Police complained about him(02 of15)
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When working as a young man on Today, he prompted a complaint by the Met Police after calling a police emergency hotline, rather than the press office, to ask for updates on a story. Smith told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme that the move was "pretty stupid", adding: "I was embarrassed about it at the time, I am embarrassed about it now, but I think my judgement isn't called into question by this, it was a foolish mistake a young man." (credit:Hemera Technologies via Getty Images)
He joined Labour aged 16(03 of15)
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He was born in Lancashire, in 1970, and his father is the Welsh historian Dai Smith. (credit:Matthew Horwood via Getty Images)
He is "on the left" of the party(04 of15)
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Smith himself as “on the left" of Labour, saying he agrees with many of Jeremy Corbyn's views but wants to"modernize" some of the values the current leader holds. (credit:Matthew Horwood via Getty Images)
He was a lobbyist for big pharma(05 of15)
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Before becoming an MP in 2010, Smith worked for pharmaceuticals giant Pfizer, becoming head of policy and government relations. He later joined another pharma company, Amgen.

On Wednesday he was forced to defend himself against claims he backs NHS privatisation, after he said “choice is a good thing” on behalf of Pfizer in 2005. Smith said the accusations were Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s today programme said it was “clearly not true" and that he has "never advocated privatization of the NHS." (credit:Mark Lennihan/AP)
He hasn't used Viagra(06 of15)
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After Piers Morgan asked Smith whether he tried Viagra in his role at Pfizer, he replied: “No, I haven’t actually, I haven’t needed it.” Asked if he tried any products from the company, he joked: "That’s for me and Mrs Smith to know about." (credit:Creative Crop via Getty Images)
He would have voted against the Iraq war(07 of15)
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Smith only became an MP in 2010, so didn't vote on the UK going to war with Iraq. He has said he would have voted against the war and been "opposed to it at the time". (credit:Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
His first attempt at becoming an MP went horribly wrong(08 of15)
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Smith ran to be the MP of Blaenau Gwent, once a Labour stronghold, but lost to an independent candidate. His smooth campaign reportedly led critics to call him "oily Smith" as well as "Viagra man" for his pharma work. (credit:Peter Byrne/PA Wire)
He's voted pro-welfare but mixed on the EU(09 of15)
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Smith's voting record show he has almost always voted against reducing housing benefit for social tenants deemed to have excess bedrooms, and has consistently voted for raising welfare benefits. His votes on the Uk's role in the EU have been mixed. Read his full voting record here. (credit:Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
Nye Bevan is one of his heroes(10 of15)
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Aneurin Bevan, known as Nye, was a Welsh Labour politician that Smith has quoted and cited as an inspiration. Bevan was regarded as a leading spokesperson for the Left and was Minister for Health under Attlee, credited with spearheading the establishment of the NHS. (credit:PA/PA Archive)
He gets compared to Tony Blair a lot(11 of15)
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Smith has been accused of being the 'Blairite-lite' candidate by Corbyn's team, while the BBC reported his press conference to launch his bid “could have come straight from the Cameron/Blair playbook” because he wore a white shirt with no tie and appeared surrounded by his family and "a youthful band of supporters". (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
He wants to change the Labour constitution(12 of15)
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One of his flagship policies is to rewrite Clause IV of the Labour constitution, to include a specific commitment to fight inequality. (credit:PA/PA Archive)
He supported Trident renewal(13 of15)
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Unlike Jeremy Corbyn, Smith was one of the MPs backing plans to renew the UK's nuclear deterrent, which were voted in on Monday. (credit:Mark McLaughlin/PA Wire)
He marched with striking miners(14 of15)
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He called the 1984 miner’s strike his “political awakening” when he launched his leadership bid, and said he had marched with miners from the Maerdy Colliery. He told the audience in his constituency he was inspired by their "sense of community, solidarity and passion for justice". (credit:Gareth Fuller/PA Wire)
He is proudly Welsh(15 of15)
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Despite being born in Morecambe, Lancashire, Smith grew up in South Wales. His father Dai is a former chairman of the Arts Council of Wales as well as a historian, described by The Guardian as being "dead centre of the 'Taffia'" - at the heart of Welsh politics and media. (credit:Matthew Horwood via Getty Images)
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