How lots of pants are made
95% of clothing on the UK High Street is produced overseas in countries such as China, Bangladesh and Vietnam1. With this trend, it has become more difficult for retailers to monitor what goes in the factories producing the pants you buy from the High Street.
The ethical campaigning organisation War on Want states that, across the world, there are hundreds of free trade areas where laws and regulations in employment don't apply. This leads to terrible exploitation of the garment workforce, the majority of who are women. They may be a long way from their families, or single mothers supporting their children, and they feel trapped in these jobs.
12-14 hour days are not uncommon, and workers are regularly forced to stay for unpaid overtime. In Bangladesh, the national minimum wage is $20 a month, which seems pittance enough, but unskilled garment workers can be earning just $14 per month. Women are working without basic health and safety standards, with little or no breaks, standing all day in poorly ventilated factories. From 1990-2005, 350 garment workers were killed and 2500 injured in Bangladesh due to factory fires, where basic safety had been ignored2.
Women may be subjected to physical and emotional abuse, too scared to stand up for themselves for fear of losing the only job available to them. Pregnant women are often sacked, and few factories offer maternity leave. In some factories, women are asked whether they are married, planning children and even if they are using birth control. The factory may only hire unmarried women, or make them sign an agreement not to get pregnant for as long as working in the factory3.
In Central America and Mexico, where gender inequality is still rife, violence towards women in the home, community and at work is a horrendous reality. Of particular concern, are the women 'maquila' workers, those who work in the garment factories of large manufacturing companies. Studies suggest that they are at high risk of violent assault as they are often migrants, and the requirement to work overtime means that they have to walk long distances home alone. In some cases, women suffer due to the inability of some men to accept women as independent citizens and punish them because they go out to work rather than staying home4.
Children can be found working in these factories from a very young age, forced to work long days and punished if they do something wrong. We have all read the newspaper reports, or seen footage in the news, however there are still factories ignoring basic human rights and going undetected. Once in full time work, children get trapped in a lack of education and even resort to crime. And so the cycle continues until someone steps into the factory and does something about it.
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1 Wrigley, P. (2008) Ethics must stay high on the agenda, Drapers
2 Drewer, P. (2006) Clothing manufacturing, Key Note report
3 www.labourbehindthelabel.org
4 Prieto-Carron, M. et.al. (2007) No more killings! Women respond to femicides in Central America
