Italian garment company Benetton said Thursday it would pay health care costs for survivors of last month's building collapse in Bangladesh, and provide assistance to families of the victims. International clothing companies came under the spotlight after it was revealed that garment factories in a building outside Dhaka that collapsed last month killing more than 1,100 people were among their suppliers.
"The events at Rana Plaza involve the entire textile sector, and everyone operating in this industry has a moral duty to support the victims' families," Benetton's chief executive Biagio Chiarolanza said in a statement. Benetton said it had teamed up with local non-governmental organisation BRAC, offering to pay for "artificial limbs and surgery for those injured" and provide long-term support to victims' families with psychological help and training courses. Other retailers that relied on Rana Plaza-based suppliers, such as Britain's Primark, have already made similar aid pledges. In Bangladesh, investigators have said that the April 24 collapse was due to negligence by the owners. About 2,500 people were injured.