True+Story+About+Globalised+Fashion+Industry-+Sweatshops

Sweatshop The impact of poverty and slave labour on human health- How long hours work, poor working condition and lack of safety measures affect human health
Name: Hei Ue Chang Student number: n8703418 Tutor: Michelle Newcomb

__** Artefact **__
(Zyglis, 2013)

This cultural artefact eludes to the exploitation of workers in the fashion industry. It draws the parallel between the cheapness of the products produced with the value that manufacturers put on the lives of the production workers who are often treated unfairly by their employers. The dead body on the left hand side represents a Bangladeshi sweatshop worker who was killed in the fire in a garment Factory in Bangladesh in 2012. This graphic was created after the deadly garment factory incident in which 112 workers were killed.

__** Public Health Issue **__
The public health issue that the artefact represents is the impact of cheap labour and poverty on human health. It is an important issue in the public health sector because work-related injuries and diseases have a negative effect on the health of the working population, which bring burden to worker’s families and communities, and a high economic loss for firms and countries (World Health Organisation, 2007).This wiki will focus on how long working hours, poor conditions and lack of safety measures connect to human morbidity and mortality. This wiki will also discuss the social and political factors that influence the workers’ decisions to work in sweatshops considering the health risks and the poor working conditions.

**__ Literature Review __**
(Gearhart, 2013)

As illustrated by the above picture, most of the profit from this $14 t-shirt goes to the retailer, while the workers only get $0.12 for each t-shirt, not even 1%. Globalisation does however provide job opportunities to the people in developing countries. For example, there are more than 4,800 garment factories and 3.5 million people working in the Bangladeshi garment industry (Robert, 2007, p. 42). Bangladeshi garment industry generates 80% of the country's expport recenue per year (Robert, 2007, p. 42). In sweatshops, workers are forced to work long hours each day with extremely low salaries that can hardly cover their living cost.A review of literature into the practices of sweatshops, allows for a discussion of poor working practice such as how long working hours, poor working conditions in factories and lack of safety measures. These working conditions connect to human morbidity and mortality.

**__Long Working Hours & Human Health__**
The working hours of workers in sweatshops are usually long. In a sweatshop of Timberland in US, workers work 14-16 hours a day, seven days a week (Esbenshade, 2004, p. 2). An average of more than 12 working hours per day, or 60 working hours per week, is known to be a health and safety hazard in the workplace (Dembe, Erickson, Delbos, & Banks, 2005, p. 593). Studies have been carried out over the past 10 years show that there is an increased likelihood for illness and injury among employees who have long working hours (Tord, Carin, & Christer, 2007, p. 14; Landsbergis et al, 2013, p.756; Dembe et al., 2005, p. 590). The injury rate of workers with extended working hours is 29% higher than workers with a normal working schedule (Dembe et al., 2005, p. 594). Landsbergis et al (2013, p. 756) found that long working hours increase the risk for hypertension, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The same study also suggests that overtime work can lead to depression and other and psychological conditions due to job stress. For families the long working hours of parents gives them less time with their children making it difficult to balance work and family life. This in turn can have negative effects on children’s emotion and intellectual (cognitive) development, such as lowering the children self-concept and developing negative behavioral problems (Frusman, 2009, p. 58). Based on the above evidence, overtime work can adversely affect the health and well-being of workers.

Figure 1. Conceptual model of the relationship between demanding work schedules and occupational injuries and illnesses. Adapted from “The impact of overtime and long work hours on occupational injuries and illnesses: new evidence from the United States,” by A. Dembe, J. Erickson, R. Delbos and S. Banks, 2005, //Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 62// p. 589.

Figure one is showing the relationship between demanding work schedules and occupational injuries and illnesses. It shows that long working hours will cause fatigue and stress which lead to the development of occupational injury and illness, which affects the health and well-being of human.

Figure 2. Trends in incidence rates of reported work related injuries and illnesses in jobs. Adapted from “The impact of overtime and long work hours on occupational injuries and illnesses: new evidence from the United States,” by A. Dembe, J. Erickson, R. Delbos and S. Banks, 2005, //Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 62// p. 593.

Figure two is showing the relationship bewtween working hours and incidence rate of workers. It shows that longer the working hours per week and per day, higher the incidence rate. This further proves the negatice effect of long hours work on human health.

**__Poor working conditions and Human Health__**
The adverse working conditions in sweatshops are associated with poor health status, for both physical and mental aspects. In sweatshops, the workers have limited opportunities for sociable relations due to few breaks and because forming labour union is usually banned there are limited avenues to address workers’ conditions (Klein, 2002, p. 212).This restricts the establishment of collective norms of worker behavior (Cottini, 2012, p. 92). The factory manager has direct control of the worker and sometimes the workers suffer from verbal abuse by manager (Robert, 2007, p. 20). The workers are not covered by health insurance and do not enjoy any benefit like holiday or sick leave (Esbenshade, 2004, p. 2) .Lack of social support, respect, discrimination and lack of control over the work conditions are factors that contribute to poorer mental health and anxiety, sleeping disorders and stress may develop (C0ttini, 2012, p. 76).

In terms of physical health of workers is also effected by the environment in which they work. Sweatshops conditions are usually very crowded with hundreds of workers working at the same place. The ventilation and lighting are often not adequate and nearly 74% of all the factories have poorly constructed walls and metal roofs which leads to temperatures exceeding the maximum standard (32 degrees) by one to eight degrees Celsius (Robert, 2007, p. 20). Such poor physical environments lead to l health problems such as heart disease, respiratory difficulties, and skin problems. Repetitive working movements, sustained static postures, long hours, noise and chemicals all are hazards related to physical health of the workers (Cottini, 2012, p. 76).To conclude, poor working condition has direct negative impacts on worker’s health.

Figure three below shows that poor working conditions are associated to poorer health outcomes. Health problems increase when poor working conditions are apparent.

Figure 3.Relationship of working conditions and health problem. Adapted from “Health at work and low pay: a European perspective,” by E. Cottini, 2012, //Journal of the Manchester school, 90//(1) p. 82.

**__Lack of safety measures and Human Health__**
As most of the sweatshops are located in factories with hundreds of employees working at same time. There is a lack of safety measures, such as firefighting equipment and evacuation routes (Esbenshade, 2004, p. 108) Some workers have to handle machines or toxic chemicals in manufacturing process without proper and sufficient personal protective equipment (Esbenshade, 2004, p. 116) This poses threat to their health as most of them are untrained and the safety measures are insufficient in the case of an accident. The level of occupational disease and injuries is extremely high. In 2009 alone, approximately one million workers were injured at work and about 20,000 suffered from diseases due to their occupation (Chena & Chan, 2004, p.1232). At facilities that make products such as footwear and textiles, employees are exposed to toxic chemicals without proper protective measures.

The table below shows the lack of protective measures and improper physical conditions in workplace and their impact on work-related injuries.

Table 1. Examples of work related injuries related to poor working conditions and protevtive measures. Adapted from “Causes and characteristics of work-related eye injuries in western Turkey,” by M. Serinken, I. Turjcuer, E.N. Cetin, A. Yilmaz, H. Elicabuk, and O. Karciolu, 2013, //Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine// //, 61,// p. 499.

__**Discussion of methodologies**__
A study of 53561 factory employees from fifteen provinces of China is selected randomly to fill in the questionnaires in 2004 (Chena & Chan, 2004). This study investigated the relationship between occupational safety to workers’ health and safety hazards. It also showed the importance of employee and union inputs into occupational health and safety measures in Chinese factories. The study was limited to examining the factories with union formed. The study could be more comprehensive if the factories without workers unions formed are also being analysed as to provide a comparison between them. Thus the importance of forming workers ‘unions to worker’s mental health status can be stated.

Another study investigated the relationship between health, working conditions and pay in fifteen Europe countries. It made use of European Working Conditions Survey conducted in 2005 (Cottini, 2012). Several trends relating to working conditions and human incidence rate are shown. These are also being compared in the fifteen European countries. This showed that people with higher levels of economic resources are expected to have better health outcomes and lower incidence rate at work. This study also found out different pattern of relationship by gender, where health outcomes of men are mostly affected by low salary while women are from bad working conditions. However, this study is limited by only cross-sectional data is analysed because of the number of countries.

Some studies had a large investigating group, such as (Dembe et al., 2005) had 10793 participants and (Chena & Chan, 2004) had 53,561 participants, while some studies had a smaller group of participants such as (Serinken et al., 2013).They both have different challenges and benefits over the other. The study involved a smaller group of participants can have a face- to- face appointments and follow-up investigation. Moreover, study involves larger groups of participants can have a more comprehensive data.

Working in sweatshops with prolonged working hours in an unsatisfactory working environment has adverse effects on mental and physical health. Very often the workers are not equipped with proper protective measures and thus toxic chemicals may lead to cancer, reproductive problems, and even lead to death. Repetitive movements and heavy loads can damage bones, joints and muscles. Working in overly hot or cold temperatures can affect the cardiovascular systems and skin, causing pain and illness.Working under pressure with little power to change the work environment can cause psychological and physical distress. Even though workers understand about the health risks of working in sweatshops, they are still working in sweatshops because of few employment options available to them. This is influenced by various social and political factors which will be discussed in the next section.

The video below showed an accident of sweatshops in Bangladesh due to lack of safety measurements in the factory. In 2012 November 24, a fire broke out in a garment factory in Bangladesh. Lack of fire exits caused the fire spread out quickly and all of the fire extingishers in the building were either missing or out of order. In the end, 112 workers died in this accident. Appropriate safety equipments are essential to protect the workers. media type="custom" key="24229530" (Australian Broadcasting Corporation news, 2012)

__** Cultural and Social Analysis **__
Globalisation is a product of capitalism and sweatshops are a product of global economy (Bellissimo, 2003, p.5). In order to maximise profit in a highly competitive fashion industry, manufacturers tend to outsource the garment marking process to contractors located in developing countries where labour costs are lower.

Many people are forced to work in sweatshop as there are limited job opportunities available within developing countries. Some of them may not understand the healthrisks of working in such unsafe environment when they just start the job or move from rural area to the city. The political decision of developing countries to allow large manufacturers to invest in factories without control results in unsatisfactory working conditions. This provides the manufacturers abundant supply of manpower resources and thus has the economic power to pay minimum wages but seldom provides enough for workers in these poor countries to live on (Crane, 2004, para. 4). The working class is exploited by the ruling class and it is explained in Marxism. Marx believed that capitalism would lead to social inequality as certain groups will dominate the society and exploit others for their own benefit (University of New South Wales Shcool of Social Sciences 2010, para. 2). Marx also argued that under capitalism, the society is more focused on the economic points of views and often neglects the non-economic or non-profit-related values, such as code of conduct and social responsibility (University of New South Wales School of Social Science, 2010, para. 14).

People who work in sweatshops are most affected by this issue because they receive minimal wages for excessive hours under unsafe conditions. The manufacturers and retailers are the people who are benefited. It is because they lower the production cost by outsourcing the manufacturing processes to the developing countries. They can allocate more resources on building the brand and marketing which ends up with increase in popularity and obtain more profits. On the other hand, most of the consumers buying such sweatshirts do not care the undesirable situation and further reinforcing this situation and thus driving the viscous cycle to continue. Although forming labour unions by workers in sweatshop is usually banned, anti-sweatshop movements have begun around the world. Anti-sweatshop movements aim to raise public awareness about sweatshops and workers rights.

Globalisation ignores the considerable threats to vulnerable populations and it tends to increase inequalities in health well being within and between countries (World Health Organisation, 2008, para. 5). Since sweatshop workers are unlikely to leave their jobs even though they have considered the health effects; specific policies and actions to improve living and working conditions have to be properly implemented. There are three main areas (workers, manufacturers and the public) that the public health experts should focus on:

__ -Educate the workers __ : Workers should understand their legal rights and entitlements in order to initiate improvements in the workplace instead of overly dependent on outside auditors (Archon, O'Rourke, & Sabel, 2001, p.71).

__ -Promote and enforce the manufacturers to set up ‘codes of conduct __ ’: Their reputations as socially responsible manufacturers can be built up by setting up the codes of conduct which aim at improving wage levels, health and safety conditions and workforce age profiles (Archon et al., 2001, p.21). It should include the freedom of forming labour union and the standard of working conditions, working hours and banning of child labour.

__ -Make use of the public power: __ The public health experts can make use of the public power to improve the social performances of the manufactures (Archon et al., 2001, p.25). Customers have the rights to purchase products from a sweatshop or not. By knowing more about the workers’ conditions, more powerful actions can be done to promote proper social performance. The public health experts can also make use of the media to disclose more information of sweatshops workers real working conditions to the public.

Anti-sweatshop poster (Ross. 2004, p. 17)

__** Analysis of the artefact and learning reflections **__
This artefact shows us the reason that the cost of a T-shirt is being discounted because the price is not reflecting the hidden costs of fashion industry. Workers are working long hours in an unsafe environment with limited safety measures and which may lead to serious accidents. The sweatshop workers of the fashion industry are oppressed by the manufacturer. They work long hours every day but get extremely low pay thus the manufacturer can obtain maximal profit. I am really surprised by the working conditions and working hours of the sweatshops when I was doing research. It is unfair that they work hard but still cannot afford to pay their daily living cost. I seldom think about where these clothes are made and how the workers are being exploited. The artefact shows the truth that most people are only paying attention the price or discount of the clothes, but we neglect the right and fairness of the sweatshop workers on the other side of the world. As a member of the public health sector, I will continue to monitor the exercise on anti-exploitation movements around the world and express my opinion rightfully. As a consumer, I will also select merchandize from manufacturers that have good code of conduct and a good corporate citizen as well.

__** Reference List **__
Archon, F., O’Rourke, D., & Sabel, C. (2001). //Can we put an end to sweatshops//. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation news. (2012, Nov 25). //Bangladesh Garment Factory Fire Leaves 112 Dead// [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yi2fv0KKLzE

Bellissimo, D. (2003). Common threats: globalisation, sweatshops and the clothes we wear. Retrieved from http://www.osstf.on.ca/adx/aspx/adxGetMedia.aspx?DocID=8569,7735,7733,546,541,442,365,Documents&MediaID=2398&Filename=classroom-resource.pdf&l=English

Chena, M., & Chan, A. (2004). Employee and union inputs into occupational health and safety measures in Chinese factories. Journal of Social Science & Medicine, 58, 1231-1245. doi: 10.1016/S0277-9536(03)00315-0

Cottini, E. (2012).Health at work and Low Pay: A European Perspective. //Journal of the Manchester school, 80//, (75-98). doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9957.2011.02250.x

Crane, D. (2004). The globalisation of culture: the fashion industry as a case study. Retrieved from []

Dembe, A., Erickson, J., Delbos, R., & Banks, S. (2005). The impact of overtime and long work hours on occupational injuries and illnesses: new evidence from the United States. //Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 62//, 588-597. doi: 10.1136/oem.2004.016667

Esbenshade, J. (2004). //Monitoring sweatshops: workers, consumers, and the global apparel industry//. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.

Fursman, L. (2009). Parent’s long work hours and the impact on family life. //Social Policy Journal of New Zeland, 35//, 55-67. Retrieved from http://www.msd.govt.nz/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/journals-and-magazines/social-policy-journal/spj35/35-parents-long-work-hours.html

Gearhart, J. (2013). The true cost of fashion [Image]. Retrieved October 1, 2013, from http://stream.aljazeera.com/story/201305140020-0022753

Klein, N. (2002). //No logo: no space, no choice, no jobs//. New York, NY: Picador.

Landsbergis, P., Janevic, T., Rothenberg, L., Adamu, M., Johnson, S., & Mirer, F. (2013). Disability rates for cardiovascular and psychological disorders among autoworkers by job category, facility type, and facility overtime hours. //American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 56//, 755-764. doi: 10.1002/ajim.22191

Robert, J.S. (2007). //Slaves to fashion: poverty and abuse in the new sweatshops// (4th ed.). Michigan, MI: University of Michigan Press.

Ross, A. (2004). //Low pay high profile: The global push for fair labor//. New York, NY: The New Press.

Serinken, M., Turjcuer, I., Cetin, E.N., Yilmaz, A., Elicabuk, H., & Karciolu, O. (2013). Causes and characteristics of work-related eye injuries in western Turkey. //Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 61 // , 497-501. doi: 10.4103/0301-4738.119435

Tord, K., Carin, H., & Christer, H. (2007). Globalisation and public health overview and a Swedish perspective. //Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 35//, 2-68. doi: 10.1080/14034950701628494

World Health Organisation. (2007). //Employment Conditions and Health Inequalities//. Retrieved from World Health Organisation website. http://www.who.int/social_determinants/resources/articles/emconet_who_report.pdf

World Health Organisation. (2008). Commission on Social Determinants of Health. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/social_determinants/thecommission/finalreport/case_studies/en/index2.html

Zyglis, A. (2013). //Garment Industry// [Image]. Retrieved October 30, 2013, from [|http://www.cagle.com/2013/05/]

__** Reflection **__
I think your wiki is informative and well-written. The artefact reflects the public health issue that you are presenting because it represents the facts of poor working condition of sweatshops and the exploitation of the sweatshop workers. I like the way that you present the relationship of long working hours and low salary on workers’ health. It is a good idea to talk about the facts of sweatshops working condition first, and then use evidence to support the effect of long hours working and poor working conditions on human health. You have also included a sweatshop incident relating to lack of safety measures. This is very useful to show that safety measures are important and essential to protect the workers as it directly linked to human mortality. Furthermore, it is good that you have mentioned the facts of child labour working in sweatshops but I think it is also worth mentioning how child labour affect on children’s health and their development. And are there any laws to regulate child labour, especially in developing countries where most sweatshops are located. I also agree with you that the public also have the power to change the poor working conditions of sweatshops as we can choose to buy products that are not come from sweatshops.
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Your wiki is very well-organised and informative. I like your artefact because it is good to know that there is retailer willing to practice free trade and create a safe and fair environment for workers. You have done a great job on researching and the use of figures is also very appropriate. Figure one gives me an idea of how poverty is connected to human health in different ways. This could be applied onto the sweatshops workers as they get low salary which could not afford their living. I agree with you that consumers can help the sweatshops workers by supporting fair trade and raising the awareness of workers’ rights. On top of this, I think the manufacturers should set up their ‘codes of conduct’ by being socially responsible manufacturers. They should improve the working conditions in sweatshops and giving them reasonable salary. Also, the workers should also be educated about their labour rights in order to build a fair and safe workplace.
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