A Look into Sweatshops Researched by Scott Jenkins, Janisa Jenkins, and Daniel Bowers.
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Transcript of A Look into Sweatshops Researched by Scott Jenkins, Janisa Jenkins, and Daniel Bowers.
A Look into Sweatshops
Researched by Scott Jenkins, Janisa Jenkins, and Daniel Bowers
Introduction What is a sweatshop?
“-a shop or factory in which employees work for long hours at low wages and under unhealthy conditions.” We didn’t know very much
about this issue Had heard that some
companies were guilty, but
to what extent were they guilty?
What we will cover…• History of Sweatshops• Guilty Companies• Why are they using them?• Countries that benefit• Conclusion• Solutions
History of Sweatshops
In the 1800’s we had sweatshops here in America We were Europe’s “China” back then, as “China” is
to America Immigrants coming from Europe Factories popping up all over the eastern United
States Chances of becoming a landowner higher for
immigrants Sacrifice pay for the chance to come over here,
future generations
Irish and German Immigration
½ of the population of Ireland came to the US Less than ½ of the population of Germany came Due to civil unrest, severe unemployment, and famine From 1820 to 1870, over 7 and ½ million immigrants
came to US That’s more that the entire population in 1810 Came with nothing but their skills and labor America exploited this to the fullest
Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
Owned by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, who survived by fleeing to roof
Surviving family member got $75 for their family member deaths
These two men were prosecuted for manslaughter, 146 people died
They were acquitted by the jury
The insurance company paid the owners $60,000 or about $400 per causalty
71 people where injured
Unions
“The Great Revolt” 60,000 workers united to fight for their rights
International Ladies Garment Workers Union Beaten, shot, scolded by family, but still prevailed Successful in obtaining those rights Rights included wage and hour standards Progress in stages
Public Eye Exploiting workers in America started to become unacceptable
In 1938, President Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
Enforced to this day
Set minimum wage
Required that after 40 hours of work each week you would earn overtime
These were all good steps for American jobs, but the US Dept of Labor says,
“…that over 50% of registered garment contractors are paying less than the minimum wage, many do not pay overtime and some allow workers to operate in unhealthy and unsafe conditions. Anyone who tries to protest these unacceptable conditions are fired.”
In 1995, 72 Thai immigrants worked under slave-like conditions in LA
What companies are guilty of using sweatshops and why?
Greed is the answer
They hire slaves for pennies an hour to maximize profits
Example of this
In the US, a sweatshop worker makes about .25 cents per garment, they sell this garment for $18. That is roughly 70 times more than what the worker was paid to make the garment.
If they were to raise their wages to .50 cents per garment it would be a livable wage for those workers
Nike in the Spotlight
In 1998, faced allegations of worker abuse in Vietnam
Reporting showed that Nike couldn’t control how the workers were treated because they didn’t directly run the factories
Supervisors were found abusing workers
Salary for the workers only provided enough for food and shelter
96% of workers said they could not meet basic needs because they didn’t make enough money.
Even if the wages were competitive compared to other foreign shoemakers, in 1998, this didn’t make it right
Pros and Cons of Sweatshops
Cons
Infringing on basic human rights
Being asked to work extended hours without overtime pay
Being charged or fined for not doing work or overtime
Quotas very high, difficult
No sick days or vacation
Unhealthy conditions
Unsafe conditions
Unpopular
Pros
Cheap labor
Cheap overhead costs
No HR department
Created jobs market in 3rd world countries
Lowered unemployment
Creating hope for poor
Alternate to crime and prostitution
Conclusion
Supply Chain Vicious Cycle Going after sweat shop is harder than it
looks Fight must come from within Corporations need to have more
responsibility for their supply chain
What can we do?
Get educated and know more about current events Check the labels for “Made in XXXXX” Join an organization to fight against sweatshops Boycott companies who participate or hide behind
the “We didn’t know” Buy locally or only “Made in USA”, but even if you
buy everything from here that doesn’t make it a guarantee that it wasn’t made in a sweatshop
Spread the word