“Cruelty-free.” “Non-animal tested.” “Animal safe.” These are phrases that shoppers are concerned with when choosing which brands to buy from. Many consumers in the U.S. do a great job of ensuring that the products they buy are cruelty-free and haven’t been tested on animals. Consumers often refuse to purchase from companies that exploit animals during the manufacturing or testing of their products. However, many consumers don’t hold companies to the same standard when it comes to their actual human employees.
Too many American consumers are ignorant of where their clothes, appliances and other goods come from, and who made them. The average consumer is probably not aware that a number of companies outsource labor to other countries and make use of sweatshop labor to keep manufacturing costs minimal. According to Global Exchange, an international human rights organization, the U.S. Department of Labor defines a sweatshop as any factory or working environment that violates at least one or more of the basic labor laws in the U.S. These basic laws include paying a set minimum wage, keeping time cards, and paying by increments of time worked.
The use of sweatshop labor is incredibly prevalent in Bangladesh and is the city’s largest industry. However, most apparel workers in Bangladesh only earn $0.13 per hour and are often forced to work numerous hours in poor conditions, according to the Anti-Sweatshop League.
Some consumers will bend over backward to avoid buying from companies that exploit animals but will shamelessly buy goods made in a sweatshop without a second thought. Protecting animals from exploitation by large companies is important; however, it’s also important to ensure that human workers are being fairly compensated for their work.
Most conscious shoppers could probably identify which companies to steer clear of if you’re looking for cruelty-free goods. But how many consumers could identify which brands are fair-trade and sweatshop free? Not many. Hundreds of common brands, including Walmart, H&M, Nike and Victoria Secret, have all made use of sweatshop labor in recent years, according to the Institute for Global Labor and Human Rights. Yet thousands of people still buy from these companies, even though they actively exploit and deprive their workers of a fair salary. Consumers need to make a greater effort to protect workers in developing countries and ensure that these workers are being treated fairly.
In developing countries where sweatshops are most prominent, it’s impossible for workers to live when they make less than $0.50 per hour of grueling labor. According to the New York Times, in 2013, the living wage in Bangladesh was raised to approximately $68 per month. However, feeding a family of three for one month costs roughly $67, leaving only $1 left over for housing and other expenses. Some illegal sweatshop workers still make significantly less than the living wage and are forced to live in extreme poverty. Consumers need to hold companies accountable for treating their workers in a humane manner.
If consumers put as much effort into fighting for a living wage as they do fighting for animal rights, then sweatshops may not be an issue in the future. Animals are important, but taking care of humans should also be a priority.
