From the toys we play with to the furniture we relax on, sweatshops are commonly used to produce a variety of products. Included in the list is sporting apparel. A sweatshop is a dangerous working factory where workers are reimbursed scantly for their difficult labor. They have few rights and there is nothing that can change their situation. Factories can be extremely hot, contain hazardous materials, and managed by abusive employers. Long hours are very common, and overtime, child labor, and minimum wage laws are often times ignored. Sweatshops are found in Export Processing Zones (EPZ) within third world countries.
The typical sweatshop worker is a young woman without any opportunity for education. She works long hours in an attempt to support her family. Sexual abuse from factory operators is very common. Sweatshop operators often fire pregnant women in order to avoid filing maternity leave. Often times, women are forced to take birth control or to abort their pregnancies. Obviously, gender plays a large part of the problem of sweatshops.
Along with gender, race and social class are prominent when discussing sweatshops. Sweatshops can be found in underdeveloped parts of the world where there are large numbers of desperate workers. The poorest of countries contain the most desperate and exploitable work force. Therefore, terrible labor practices are most common in third world countries. The majority of the work forces in these factories are not Caucasian. For example, Nike, the world’s largest sneaker and sportswear maker, has “some 180 manufacturers and about 210,000 employees” in China. Along with gender, race and social class are interconnected when discussing sweatshops.
Despite the obvious problem sweatshops bring, there are those who believe they are vital to American consumerism. Paul Krugman, a Nobel Prize winning economist, defends the existence of sweatshops. He argues that sweatshops offer higher wages and the working conditions are better in comparison to previous jobs of farm labor. Also, sweatshops are the first step in the process of technological and economic development that these underdeveloped countries so badly need.
Although one of the many companies that have used sweat labor, Nike has been the target company of criticism about labor conditions in low-wage countries. In the 1990s, when Nike was being pummeled with criticism, the company responded with panic and denial. Recently, however, Nike has developed a program to reduce the labor issues in the 900-odd factories that produce their sneakers. They have inspectors that grade labor standards and also allow random factory inspections. Historically, human rights groups have protested and demonstrated publicly against Nike. However, now these groups speak with the company directly.
I understand that most people would disagree with the working conditions in these sweatshops. Learning about sweatshops made me realize how fortunate I am in this complex, unequal world. I also understand consumption of these sweatshop products is a social norm in America. My closet is filled with these products, not to mention I am currently wearing a pair of Nike shoes. It is a difficult task to eliminate sweatshop-like labor and create an economy where unsavory working conditions cease to exist. However, I think educating others, along with smart product purchasing will lead to a world without sweatshops.
just copy and paste this! the whole thing
http://skylight.wsu.edu/s/f4f224b0-1fdf-403e-9cc6-04a2abf222eb.srv
