SW

EATSH

OPS

VIOLATING HUMAN RIGHTS ONE GARMENT

AT A TIME

By: Hannah Kaul

WHAT

1. Sweatshops

2. Working conditions in violation of human rights

SWEATSHOPThe term “sweatshop” has many definitions:

• “any factory that violates more than one of the fundamental US labor laws, which include paying a minimum wage and keeping a time card, paying overtime, and paying on time” (Unites States Department of Labor)

• “any factory that does not respect workers’ right to organize an independent union is a sweatshop” (UNITE)

• “any factory that does not pay its workers a living wage—that is, a wage that can support the basic needs of a small family” (Global Exchange)

WORKING CONDITIONS

• Dangerous environment

• Intimidation is used as a tool

• Overtime work

DANGEROUS WORK ENVIRONMENT• Spaces are overcrowded with workers to reduce rent

per worker, which can lead to health and safety risks (Herman, 472)

• Exposure to toxic chemicals, glues, and ingestion of fabric fibers are a result of workers being deprived of masks (Global Exchange)

• Safety standards are low (Kaeb, 349)

Example:

• A fire in a four-story sweatshop factory killed 188 workers with 469 seriously injured

• Insufficient safety procedures were in place• Lack of fire extinguishers, alarms, and emergency

exits with blocked external exits• Extremely flammable fabrics quickly spread the fire

(Kaeb, 349)

DANGEROUS WORK ENVIRONMENT CONTINUED

• Mexican worker, Alvaro Saavedra Anzures, attests to the sweatshop conditions she encounters to labor rights investigators

“I spend all day on my feet, working with hot vapor that usually burns my skin, and

by the end of the day my arms and shoulders are in pain”

(Global Exchange)

DANGEROUS WORK ENVIRONMENT CONTINUED

In violation of the following Universal Declaration of Human Rights articles:

• 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood

• 23: (1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.

• 24: Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

(UN General Assembly)

INTIMIDATION USED AS A TOOL• “Illegal immigrants are being held in involuntary

servitude” (The United States Department of Justice)

• Verbal abuse, including yelling and shouting, is used to increase production rates inducing anxiety on workers

• “If you don’t want them to yell at you, you need to complete your work” states an operator in relation to the intense supervision (Neu, 342)

• With the majority of sweatshop workers being young vulnerable women, sexual and physical abuse is commonly practiced (Kaeb, 349)

INTIMIDATION USED AS A TOOL CONTINUEDIn violation of the following Universal Declaration of Human Rights articles:

• 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood

• 3: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person

• 4: No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms

• 5: No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment

• 23: (3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.

OVERTIME WORK • Piece-Rate Pay

• Workers are paid per piece that they create rather than the hours worked (Herman, 472)

• Daily quotas are set on pieces that must be made (Neu,341)

• Higher quotas increase the intensity of work performance required while increasing the amount of hours worked (Neu, 341)

• Anzures states,

“We have to meet the quota of 1,000 pieces per day. That translates to more than a piece every minute. The quota is so high that we cannot even go to the bathroom or

drink water or anything for the whole day” (Global Exchange)

OVERTIME WORK CONTINUED• Failure to comply to overtime work results in:

• Threat of termination• Harassment• Intimidation

(Kaeb, 345)• 11-hour shifts, 6 days a week is common (Global Exchange)

• Paid below living wages, making it necessary for workers to work overtime (Kaeb, 345)

OVERTIME WORK CONTINUED

In violation of the following Universal Declaration of Human Rights articles:

• 23: (2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.

• 24: Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

WHY: WE PLAY A DIRECT ROLE• The garment industry is becoming more and more

globalized with almost all apparel companies outsourcing their garment production

• There is a demand for low-cost apparel in the United States

• We wear clothing that is made in sweatshops

• Dehumanization is the cost of our low-priced goods

• This apparel has a quick turn around, putting pressure on the sweatshops to increase their quotas

(Esbenshade, 542)

WHO

• Nearly one million sweatshops exist internationally (Esbenshade, 542)

• 20 million production workers (Neu, 322)

The following companies use/ used sweatshops for their apparel production:

• NBA• NFL• MLB• Nike• Gap• Disney• P Diddy• Kohls

Department Stores

• Levi’s• Wal-Mart(Powell, 269)

• Aldo• Burlington Coat Factory• Charlotte Russe• Forever 21• HSN• Urban Outfitters• TJ Maxx• Marshall’s

(United States Department of Labor)

WHERE• Mainly in the developing world, where people are most

vulnerable

• Most prevalent in China, India, and Central America

(Esbenshade, 542) Image Source: Felipe Menegaz

RECOMMENDATIONS

1.) Shop fair trade apparel at the following fair trade certified stores

• Good and Fair Clothing

• HAE Now

• Indigenous Design Corp

• MEC

• Oliberte Footwear

• PACT Apparel

• Patagonia Incorporated

• Patico Brand Group

• prAna

(Fair Trade USA)

* If the demand for low-cost goods is decreased, the number of suffering employees in sweatshops could also decrease

RECOMMENDATIONS2.) Fair Trade Business Proposal:

• There are only 9 Fair Trade Certified clothing companies while sweatshops are such a prevalent issue in violation of countless human rights

• Open a fair trade chain store with clothing that resembles apparel of the mainstream, sweatshop clothing stores but with higher quality garments

• Make the stores an alternative to the other apparel stores by having locations near the other non- fair trade stores

• Offer information on the importance of fair trade and the consequences of sweatshops within the stores

• If these stores are comparable in style to the other stores and readily available, a big impact could be made on the number of sweatshops throughout the world

CONCLUSION

Which of your garments is worth the cost of dehumanizing the person who made it?

WORK CITED

"Apparel and Home Goods." Fair Trade USA. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.

Esbenshade, Jill. "A Review Of Private Regulation: Codes And Monitoring In The Apparel Industry." Sociology Compass 6.7 (2012): 541-556. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 8 Dec. 2014.

Herman, Andrew. "Reassessing The Role Of Supplier Codes Of Conduct: Closing The Gap Between Aspirations And Reality." Virginia Journal Of International Law 52.2 (2012): 445-482. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Dec. 2014.

"Inspections Report." Inspections Report. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.

Kaeb, Caroline. "Emerging Issues Of Human Rights Responsibility In The Extractive And Manufacturing Industries: Patterns And Liability Risks." Journal Of I

nternational Human Rights 6.2 (2008): 327-353. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Dec. 2014.

Neu, Dean, Abu Shiraz Rahaman, and Jeff Everett. "Accounting And Sweatshops: Enabling Coordination And Control In Low-Price Apparel Production Chains." Contemporary Accounting Research 31.2 (2014): 322-346. Business Source Elite. Web. 2 Dec. 2014.

POWELL, BENJAMIN, and DAVID SKARBEK. "Sweatshops And Third World Living Standards: Are The Jobs Worth The Sweat?." Journal Of Labor Research 27.2 (2006): 263-274. SPORTDiscus with Full Text. Web. 8 Dec. 2014.

WORK CITED CONTINUED

"Sweatfree FAQs | Global Exchange." Sweatfree FAQs | Global Exchange. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.

UN General Assembly, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 10 December 1948, 217 A (III), available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/ 3ae6b3712c.html [accessed 9 December 2014]

"UNITE HERE!" UNITE HERE! N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.

United States. Department of Labor. Extensive Violations of Federal, State Laws Found among Garment Contractors at Los Angeles Fashion District Location. Www.dol.gov. N.p., 13 Dec. 2012. Web. 8 Dec. 2014.

"UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR." U.S. Department of Labor. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2014.