Sweatshops Social Impact

1531 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: History of fashion

The fashion industry. Models waltzing down the catwalk, fashionista’s chattering quickly into a phone, racks of clothes and stands of shoes, mannequins dressed perfectly from head to toe. Striding out of the store, with bags in hand, stroking your fingers along the soft material. This is the fashion industry, for us. There is a less fashionable side of the fashion industry, a side with sweatshops, despite, cheating, long hours, cramped conditions, abuse and barely making a living to care for their families.

In 1971, the iconic sport brands, Nike, was formed. By 1972, they had signed their first athlete, Llie Nastase. Now they are the biggest sellers of athletic footwear in the world and made over 40 billion in revenue in 2014, this continues …show more content…

Toms shoes are given to people in need all over the world, but are shoes really what these people need the most? These children are being given shoes while their parents are still unemployed, unable to support their families. With a stable job parents would be able to provide shoes for their children. Rather than providing shoes, providing stable, jobs with good working conditions, fair wages with a safe and happy environment would have a bigger and better impact. After critics slammed Toms shoes in the media, they came back fighting, ready to rethink and adjust their model. After being posed the question “does the buy one - give one program actually help fight poverty?” Toms began to find new ways to expand their model. After much demand, Toms made the decision to manufacture shoes in Haiti. This provided 100 Haitians with much needed employment in 2014, four years after the devastating Haiti earthquake. This factory is also monitored regularly and comes under the Argentinian “no sweat-shop” policy. Toms is now not only giving the gift of shoes but also the gift of sight (when Toms eyewear is purchased a patient receives and eye exam and medical treatment to help restore sight), the gift of water (when Toms coffee is purchased a week’s supply of safe, clean water is given to someone in need), the gift of safe birth (when a Toms bag is purchased Toms Giving Partners delivers vital birthing equipment to help help women have a safe birth despite the state of the facilities), the gift of kindness (when a Toms standup backpack is purchased it helps provide training to school staff and counselors to prevent and respond to acts of bullying). Toms responds to critics and works to improve their model, although there are still improvements to be made such as, ensuring that the aid they provide is the most crucial aid needed for that particular community and that a community does

Show More
Related

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of 'Terror's Purse Strings'

    1041 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ravisankar concludes his expository essay by informing his audience about organizations like the University Students Against Sweatshops who are forcing corporations to source their clothes from respectful factories or they will not purchase their products.

    Read More

  • Legacies of Historical Globalization

    948 Words  | 2 Pages

    "Opinion | Your TOMS Shoes Won't save the World." The Miami Student. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2013.

    Read More

  • Threads: Gender, Labor, and Power in the Global Apparel Industry by Jane Collins

    1067 Words  | 3 Pages

    Jane Collins is currently a professor of rural sociology and women’s studies at the University of Wisconsin. She also has published a number of books and articles related to the apparel industry. Collins brought a great deal of knowledge to the writing of this book through her childhood experiences growing up in Virginia and her more then thirty years of research experience in Latin America. However, it could be said that having such extensive experience and narrowed knowledge of the industry may have affected the direction and perspectives found in this book.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Where Am I Wearing

    1375 Words  | 3 Pages

    In China, Kelsey Timmerman spent time with a couple who worked at the Teva factory, traveled to the countryside to meet the couple’s son, insert name, who hasn’t seen his parents in three years due to his parents working long hours and it being expensive to take a train ride. In the US, the author visited one of a few clothing factories in the US to talk to the workers about his shorts, and the decrease of American garment factories. Timmerman wants the consumer to be more engaged and more thoughtful when mindlessly buying clothes. By researching how well the brands you want to buy from monitor their factories and what their code of ethics details, you can make a sound decision on if this is where you would want to buy your clothes. The author writes about brands that improve employers lives like SoleRebels, a shoe company who employs workers and gives them health insurance, school funds for their children, and six months of maternity leave. Brands like soleRebels that give workers benefits most factory workers have never even heard of help improve the lives of garment workers and future generations. From reading this book, Timmerman wants us to be more educated about the lives of garment workers, bridge the gap between consumers and manufacturers, and be a more engaged and mindful consumer when purchasing our

    Read More

  • Sweat Shops are an Economic Stepping Stone

    1215 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many people in our society today are constantly asking, "Why do sweatshops exist?" The answer to this question is that companies like Nike and Wal-Mart use sweatshops to produce their goods for a much cheaper rate, to reduce the cost of their products. The problem with sweatshops is that the workers are subject to hard work in often times poor conditions for minimal pay. But although many people may condemn sweatshops, there are some advantages that many people overlook when arguing against sweatshops and their practices.

    Read More

  • Sweatshops

    1059 Words  | 3 Pages

    When people think of a sweatshop, images of people assembling items in a hot and crowded factory somewhere in a “Third World” country tend to come to mind. However, the first few sweatshops were located in both New York and England, becoming established in the late 1800’s. The term “sweatshop” originated from the term “sweating”, which described the contractual agreements between workers and designers to produce clothing. In these workshops, there was a “sweater”, an individual who monitored garment making (“Origins Of Sweatshops”, 2017). The term sweatshop is more so currently used to describe the working conditions rather than the type of workplace itself. Even back then, these workplaces were unsanitary, were sources of safety hazards and extremely crowded. Throughout the years, poor people and immigrants filled up the sweatshops in desperate search for work. This eventually spread beyond the United States and U.K., and became a commonplace practice in developing countries ruled by dictators. With this spread quickly came the employment of child workers, especially in places such as Indonesia, and India. Like the adults, they are subject to treatment that violates their human rights. They are left without protection from any other adults, making them more susceptible to abuse. Despite this, major corporations and brands such as Wal-Mart, Adidas, Aldo, Victoria’s Secret, Urban Outfitters and so on use sweatshops for affordable labor. One of the more prominent cases is the incident involving Kathy Lee Gifford and Wal-Mart, in which both Gifford and Wal-Mart “suffered as a result of the negative press surrounding the manufacturing of Gifford’s clothing line distributed by Wal-Mart” (Radin & Calkins). Gifford’s clothing was produced in a factory in Honduras, where female workers constantly suffered “cruel and inhumane treatment” (Radin &

    Read More

  • The Role of Sweatshops in the Global Economy

    2486 Words  | 5 Pages

    “Sweatshops Are the Norm in the Global Apparel Industry. We’re Standing up to Change That.” International Labor Rights Forum. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Feb. 2014. .

    Read More

  • The Benefits Of Sweatshops

    1601 Words  | 4 Pages

    There are lots of sweatshops established in developing and less developed countries such as China and India. The main reason is the labor costs in those countries are much lower than developed countries. Due to the huge population in China and India, the wages will stay low in long term. Most of the workers are uneducated and unskilled, and they have to accept the low wages in order to pay for their daily necessities. The multinational companies like Apple Inc., IBM, H&M, Nike opened factories or outsourcing their products in China. These are unethical factories. A lot of people criticize the owners of these factories. However, all things are created by the demand. If sweatshops were useless, then they wouldn’t develop. Corporations want low

    Read More

  • Nike Ethics

    1474 Words  | 3 Pages

    Nike was first known as Blue Ribbon Sports, founded by University of Oregon track athlete Philip Knight and his coach Bill Bowerman in 1962. It officially became Nike, Inc. in 1978 while taking its name after the Greek goddess of victory. Mark Parker is the current CEO and Phil Knight still continues to hold a position at the top of the organization, as the company Chairman.

    Read More

  • Essay Benefits Of Sweatshops

    1347 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Benefits of Sweatshop Sweatshops, when left to operate without government intervention, are the most efficient way out of poverty especially in developing countries. This argument may feel far fetched, but when examined in the context of those working at sweatshops and the locations sweatshops are most often constructed in, the reason why this is true is apparent. The benefits of sweatshops can be found by examining how they increase living conditions, examining the locations where sweatshops are constructed, and looking at how government regulations on factories don’t help anyone. Sweatshops increase the standards of living for the workers and their communities.

    Read More

  • Nike Case Study

    1597 Words  | 4 Pages

    Nike, which is the Greek goddess of victory, was born in 1972, when BRS launched its first branded shoe at the U.S. Olympic track and field trials. Over the next decade, the company nearly doubled in size each year. In 1978, BRS officially changed its corporate name to that of the Nike brand.

    Read More

  • The Truth Behind the Fashion Industry.

    1046 Words  | 3 Pages

    Thesis: With the unregulated practices that goes on in the Fashion Industry, change is one notion that this abusive yet glamorous business have yet to see.

    Read More

  • Nike Report

    962 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nike Inc. was founded in 1962 by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight as a partnership under the name, Blue Ribbon Sports. Our modest goal then was to distribute low-cost, high-quality Japanese athletic shoes to American consumers in an attempt to break Germany's domination of the domestic industry. In 2000 Nike Inc. not only manufactured and distributed athletic shoes at every marketable price point to a global market, but over 40% of our sales came from athletic apparel, sports equipment, and subsidiary ventures. Nike maintains traditional and non-traditional distribution channels in more than 100 countries targeting its primary market regions: United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Americas (not including the United States).

    Read More

  • Summary Of Nike

    773 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nike was incorporated on September 8, 1969. Company focuses on seven key categories of its products: running, basketball, and football, men’s training, women’s training, Nike’s sportswear and action sports. It also designs products for kids as well as other athletic and recreational uses, such as cricket, golf, other activities, baseball, tennis, volleyball, soccer and wrestling. The Nike Company also deals in athletic apparel and accessories in addition of athletic bags and accessory items.

    Read More

  • Nike Assignment

    2668 Words  | 6 Pages

    Nike is the world famous company. It is an American multinational corporation which is occupied in the design, development, manufacturing and worldwide marketing and selling of the footwear, equipment and many more other services. The Nike Company was founded on 25 January 1964. The first founder Bill Bower man and the second founder Phil Knight. The Nike name comes from the Greek word goddess of victory. The mission of the Nike Company is to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world. There are two sides to Nike: the public face and hidden misery. It is the number one shoe maker in the world. This Company creates designs for all age groups, for instance, for men, women and for Children.

    Read More

More about Sweatshops Social Impact

Open Document