Adidas

Reasons to avoid

1. A German court ruled in 2025 that Adidas's "climate neutral" advertising was misleading — the company relied primarily on carbon offsets rather than actual emissions reductions. The ruling was brought by environmental NGO Deutsche Umwelthilfe.trellis.net2025-04-10
2. Labor rights groups documented over $11 million in unpaid wages and severance owed to workers at eight Adidas supplier factories in Cambodia. Despite repeated calls from unions, Adidas has refused to sign the binding Pay Your Workers agreement.cleanclothes.org2023-05-11
3. Workers at the Hulu Garment factory in Cambodia — an Adidas supplier — were tricked into resigning during the pandemic, forfeiting severance pay they had accrued over years. Over 1,000 workers are still seeking $2.4 million in unpaid severance.just-style.com2024-05-20
4. Twenty-six workers, including union leaders, were fired from an Adidas supplier factory in Myanmar after a three-day strike over poverty wages. Clean Clothes Campaign called out Adidas's failure to protect workers' right to organize.cleanclothes.org2023-03-08
5. French NGO Zero Waste France filed a greenwashing complaint against Adidas for claiming shoes are made from "recycled" materials without disclosing that only the upper portion qualifies — not the whole shoe.business-humanrights.org2022-06-22
6. Ethics ratings site Good On You scores Adidas "Not Good Enough" overall, noting the brand does not ensure workers in its supply chain receive a living wage — despite generating over €22 billion in annual revenue.goodonyou.eco2024-04-24