You know how it is in this age of social media: Post something and people will either love or hate the message. Well, it’s Bench’s turn to be despised right now after the clothing company shared on Facebook several images with dramatic captions that are apparently part of a marketing series (complete with the hashtags #SupportLocal and #LoveLocal).

The bashing stems from the brand seemingly taking pride in having employees who are so loyal they come to work these days even if they have to walk or ride a bicycle. Check out the caption for the above photo:

We couldn’t have done it without the help of Francis, who has worked at the warehouse for 27 years. Francis is 52 years strong and rides his bike for an hour from his home in Alabang to the warehouse in Taguig as our Warehouse Supervisor, monitoring the proper sortation of our freshly produced products. We thank Francis and the rest of our employees, who have been our own frontliners through these years.

Basically, netizens are wondering why Bench cannot provide shuttle service for these workers.

“Provide transportation—thanking them ain’t enough,” comments Arnie DL.

“May pambayad sa mga endorsers tapos walang pang-transpo sa mga employees?” asks Chelsea Danao.

“Stop romanticizing the everyday struggles of impoverished people!” exhorts Juana Cordoba Castañeda.

There was one other post that had supposedly been taken down already. That one praised a worker named Richel, whose plight is even worse: She now “walks from her home in Kalayaan to Ayala, both in Makati, to report for work.”

Someone has theorized that perhaps Bench’s marketing or PR team intentionally did this to shed light on what’s currently happening within the apparel firm. We doubt it, but who knows?

What do you think?