"Made in Italy: shame in Italy," a handful of migrant laborers who had traveled from Italy's famed leatherware region Tuscany chanted last week in Geneva outside the flagship store of luxury-accessory maker Montblanc, holding placards with the slogan.

Standing about 3 kilometers from where Montblanc's $76 billion parent Richemont was meeting shareholders, the workers — flanked by more than a dozen Italian and Swiss union officials — accused the pen and watches maker of dropping its supplier Z Production last year because of rising costs.

The Chinese-owned contractor, based in Tuscany, had improved its working conditions in October 2022 after years of irregular contracts and long shifts, workers and union officials said.