Ramping up the equality fight

Women form the backbone of an industry that accounts for roughly 13% of North Macedonia's economic output and more than one quarter of its exports, but most are paid the minimum wage that is barely enough to survive. Photo: Robert ATANASOVSKI/ AFP

A sewing machine and a raised fist, a woman superhero ready to fight back against bad bosses: posters at the office of former textile worker Kristina Ampeva highlight her fight to protect women at work.

She swapped her sewing machine for a megaphone in 2016 after years working in "horrible" conditions in factories making clothes and leather goods mostly for western European markets.