Dominican Textile Group Asks Customs to Investigate Clothing Falsely Labeled Made in USA

The Dominican Association of Textile Industries (ADITEX) asked the Dominican Republic’s customs agency in June 2014 to investigate a wave of clothing sold in the country with “Made in USA” labels. The group suspects the goods were made in countries outside the CAFTA-DR trade agreement.

Why the group was suspicious

ADITEX president David Cortés said the goods were priced very competitively despite much higher USA production costs. He noted that the Dominican minimum wage was roughly 473 pesos ($11) for an eight-hour day, while comparable USA wages could be about five times higher, Sourcing Journal reported, citing Diario Libre.

• Labeling the goods as USA-made let non-CAFTA-DR producers avoid the 20% tariff on textiles and the 18% ITBIS sales tax, the group said.
• ADITEX said it was “deeply concerned” about the effect on the country’s 2,000 textile production units, which provide more than 20,000 jobs.
• It asked customs to check all goods entering the country with a “Made in USA” label.

Labels removed and replaced

In July 2014, Cortés said an inspection of shops found many brands marked “Made in the U.S.A.” “We believe those items are re-ticketed,” he said, quoted by Dominican Today. “In fact, many of these labels are misplaced, revealing that they aren’t original but have been removed and then put back.”