HanesBrands Inc., Winston-Salem, N.C., announced today that it is donating more than 1 million items of underwear and activewear to assist hurricane victims in Florida and Puerto Rico and is using its operations in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic to supply essentials to Puerto Rico employees.
Hanes is in the process of canvassing its 240 employees to determine their circumstances. Approximately 100 employees have reported to the company’s seamless fabric plant in Humacao, which sustained only minor damage. There have been no known fatalities of employees or family members, but five employees had their homes completely destroyed.
The company is using its plant’s water wells and power generators to provide water to employees and prepare food on site at its cafeteria. The company’s Dominican Republic operations, where the company has more than 8,000 employees, are sending shipments of bottled water, packaged food rations for families, clothing and other necessities via ferry. The company also expects to provide employees with supermarket vouchers to help sustain their families over the coming weeks. Provisions will also be shipped from the United States.
“The devastation in Puerto Rico is heartbreaking,” said Ricardo Perez, Hanes’ vice president of Caribbean operations, and a native of Puerto Rico. “We are doing everything that we can to locate employees and provide basic sustenance as we prepare to bring back operations to further aid in the recovery efforts for employees, their families, and the island. The outpouring of concern and help from our company’s employees in the Caribbean, Latin America, the United States and around the world, has been a blessing.”
In addition to providing aid to its employees, Hanes is donating more than 1 million items of apparel through nonprofit charity Delivering Good to assist hurricane victims in Puerto Rico and Florida. Previously, the company donated more than 1 million items of apparel to hurricane flooding victims in Texas and the Gulf Coast.
The donated apparel includes Hanes, Champion, Playtex, Bali, Maidenform underwear, intimate apparel, socks, T-shirts and fleece sweatshirts and bottoms. Delivering Good, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity will arrange for the goods to get to appropriate relief efforts in Florida and in Puerto Rico.
“Victims of natural disasters have a tremendous need for basic necessities during the recovery period, are we are proud to provide comfort through clothing,” said Chris Fox, HanesBrands vice president of corporate social responsibility. “Over the past 10 years, Hanes has provided more than $10 million worth of clothing to tens of thousands of victims of natural disasters, from tornados in the Midwest and South, hurricanes along the Gulf Coast and Caribbean, earthquakes in Haiti, Japan and China, and wildfires in California.”
Delivering Good (formerly K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers) serves the clothing, home and children’s industries in distributing donated products to those in need. For those who want to help Delivering Good in its relief efforts, they may go to www.delivering-good.org/disaster-relief/ to donate new apparel or cash. Every $10 donated allows Delivering Good to distribute more than $100 of new, useful product.
For more information on Hanesbrands Inc., visit www.haneslocator.com.
