Who+are+the+real+fashion+victims?


 * Edward Swete Kelly**
 * Tutor: Dr Jey Rogers**
 * Topic: ‘Blood, Sweat, and T-Shirts’: What is the role of the globalised fashion industry in affecting human health and quality of life? - Panel topic 3. **

Artefact
media type="custom" key="24267580" //'Fashion Victims - Yolanda Dominguez'// Yolanda Dominguez, a Spanish visual artist centered her most recent art installation in the busy fashion streets of Madrid. The aim of the project was to highlight the recent tragic events in Bangladesh, where the collapse of a textile factory in Savar resulted in the death of 1127 ‘sweatshop’ workers.

The installation featured a number of women, dressed in fashionable clothes and adorned with accessories buried under rubble in the middle of the pavement on the posh Gran Via, Spain’s equivalent of New York’s fifth avenue. It was symbolic to pictures that emerged in the days after the collapse of limbs protruding from the rubble.

A number garments from some of Spain’s top fashion labels were found within the rubble of the Rana Plaza factory collapse. Domiguez explain that she “wants people to stay angry and keep up the pressure on retailers ” (Frayer, 2013). (NPR news article).

Public Health Issue
The Rana Plaza collapse has highlighted the human cost associated with global demand for fast fashion. What is the economic cost of this global necessity of an industry to the people who work in sub par conditions for minimal salary to clothe the rest of the world? How do these strenuous hours, low income and poor working conditions affect morbidity and mortality within these developing countries? Is there a direct correlation between an average sweat shop workers salary and the rate of immunisable disease, general malnutrition and poor health?

Furthermore, there is the valid argument that it is better for an individual to be earning less than $US2 per day than earning nothing at all, is it an economical necessity that sweat shops exist? Will any real change come out of the Rana Plaza collapse, or is it another Kony knee jerk? Has it already been forgotten, little change has happened in ten years, can we expect anything to happen in the next ten?

Definition
Forced labour, labour exploitation, slave labour, these terms all encompass one generic definition, “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily” (ILO, 1930, s.10.2.)

The International Labour Standard (ILO) breaks the term forced labour into a number of specific terms, they estimate that approximately 21 million are exploited by private agents, that is an individual, who through the monopolisation of labour, defines the standard pay rate, rewards and working hours of individuals. Traditional forced labour, which exists throughout much of Africa, involves individuals who are forced to work for no reward and are imprisoned whilst at rest. Coercive labour, which is prevalent in the Caribbean Asia and Latin America utilise threats or actual violence towards workers. Whereas, bonded labour, which is common throughout Asia, are individuals who are caught in inescapable debt with exorbitant interest rates, and are forced to work to pay off their dues. State-imposed forced labour, is generally utilised as a punishment for opposition or imposed on social minorities within the country. Finally human trafficking where women and child are traded as commodities and are forced into prostitution or other forms of labour (International Labour Standards, 2013).

Prevalence of Forced Labour
It is estimated that approximately 21 million people are victims of forced labour worldwide as of 2013. Of this it is estimated that 56% is located within Asia, 18% in Africa, and 9% in Latin America. 14.2 million people are forced into economic activities including construction, domestic work, agriculture, and manufacturing (including textiles). The other 6.8 million are forced into sexual exploitation or are enslaved by their state (ILO, 2013).

73% of this workforce is made up of women and children between the ages of 15 and 18 (The Guardian, 2011). The data which is currently available on forced labour is questionable, labour exploitation, which makes up the majority of forced labour is poorly recorded amongst many nations, due to; a number of countries failing to count males as exploited, the fact that labour exploitation is harder to detect and the fact that many countries do not have strong anti-labour exploitation bodies (ILO, 2012).

Case Study: Sri Lanka, Indonesia and The Philippines
Asian countries are notorious for utilising forced labour to manufacture mass goods at cheap and cost effective prices, particularly, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and the Philippines. A report released in 2011 by the International Textile Garment and Leather Workers' Federation, surveyed 83 factories with a combined workforce close to 100,000, across what they determined to be the three worst offenders globally, Indonesia, Bangladesh and the Philippines. Out of all the factories not one paid a wage which met the standard living wage of each of the countries, and many did not meet the legal minimum wage.

The common way that many of these factories manage to exploit their workers is by placing them onto short term contracts, these can be anywhere from one day to one month. This enables employers to avoid paying employee entitlements, including, overtime, sick and holiday pay, whilst allowing the employer to impose higher production targets on the staff members (The Guardian, 2011).

Upwards of 85% of workers are placed onto these short term contracts, this makes it difficult for unions to gain traction, as workers contracts are often not renewed if the individual has known union involvement (ITGLWF, 2011). Although the factories offer incentives based on productivity targets, these are often unobtainable irrespective of the hours worked and the breaks that workers forgo. In one factory in Sri Lanka, the workers base wage was dropped if the production targets were not met. To attempt to meet these targets workers in Indonesia will often do upwards of 40 hours overtime per week. In the Philippines overtime is normally around 35 hours per week whilst in Indonesia the typical working day is around 14 hours (ITGLWF, 2011).

Workers are threatened with physical violence, and psychological abuse is common, workers are threatened that they will not have their contracts renewed if they are not working hard enough, this in turn creates a culture where employees will forgo toilet and meal breaks to set an example to their managers. In one case that occurred in Indonesia, 40 workers were locked in a store room without access to toilet facilities and water as a punishment for not meeting daily targets (The Guardian, 2011).

What is the fashion industry worth?
Globally it is estimated that the fashion industry is worth $1.5 trillion, it employs millions of people and is existent within every single country worldwide (Ahmed, 2013). Within Australia it contributes $13 billion annually to the economy and employs over 70,000 individuals (Ibis world, 2013).

Australia does not have a strong textile manufacturing industry due to the cost of labour and resources within the country, the majority of clothing worn within Australia is imported from overseas. Furthermore, union driven labour policy has forced clothing which has traditionally been Australian designed and made to overseas producers as commission based production has been deemed unfair and unlawful (Ibis world, 2013).

Comparison of public health determinants
Below is a comparison of three nations who have been known to utilise forced labour, they are compared to Australia. The determinants listed are common factors which are utilised to base a countries economic development and standing. There is a significant disparity between the three nations themselves, however. in comparison to Australia there is a marked difference.

Based on the below data, it can be surmised that there is a direct correlation with developing nations, poor healthcare, lower life expectancy, and longer hours of work. Combined with the fact that these three countries are considered to be developing (China is exempt on some standards), and all have forced labour textile industries, further investigation and data analysis would be required to draw a direct correlation between forced labour and developing nations, although there is a strong indication for it.

(World Health Organisation, 2013)
 * **Measure** || **Bangladesh** || **China** || **Costa Rica** || **Australia** ||
 * **Infant mortality rate** || 47.3 deaths/1,000 live births || 15.2 deaths/1,000 live births || 8.95 deaths/1,000 live births || 4.49 death/ 1,000 live births ||
 * **Average life expectancy** || 70.36 years || 74.99 years || 78.06 years || 81.98 years ||
 * **Rate of malnutrition** || 41.30% || 3.40% || 1.10% || <0.1% ||
 * **Average wage** || $70 per month || $300 per month || $41.76 per month || $6066 per month ||
 * **Average working week** || 80 hours per week || 70 hours per week || 70 hours per week || 38 hours per week ||
 * **Rate of GDP on healthcare** || 3.5% of GDP || 5.20% || 10.9% of GDP || 9.5% GDP ||
 * **Number of child workers** || 13%, 4,485,497 || Between 10 – 20 million || 5%, 39,000 || unknown - <1000 ||

Better to earn $2 than no dollars
Economist Jeffery Sachs, has argued that in essence, there are not enough sweatshops. He basis his argument on the theory of comparative advantage, that in a free market parties will be better off if they dedicate their resources to what they do best. In this case it is arguable that developing countries make quality garments, the quickest, and at the lowest price (Meyerson, 2007). Furthermore, it is arguable that the working conditions that employees currently have are significantly safer and improved over what they have previously had, although in comparison to developed countries they are well below standard (Kristof, 2008).

Outcomes from Rana Plaza
In the wake of the April collapse which resulted in 1129 deaths and more than 2500 injuries, global focus turned onto the working and safety conditions of 'sweat shop workers'. Within weeks of the collapse, the Bangladesh government had made amends to its employment and building safety laws, and vowed to increase workers safety. However, seven months on many are questioning what has come of these changes (Hussein, 2013)?

With a lack of government inspectors combined with powerful factory owners who have close associations with politicians, it is questionable whether much will change in the country. Evidence of this was apparent when earlier in October, 7 people were killed and dozens injured in a blaze that broke out in another garment factory. The countries reliance upon its textile industry creates fear for change amongst politicians and law makers, as they do not want to see fashion labels move elsewhere for their manufacturing requirements. Meanwhile 94% of victims from the collapse are still suffering from injuries sustained in the building collapse and are unable to return to work (Edwards, 2013).

Discussions over compensation for victims between major brands whose garments were manufactured in the Rana Plaza are on going, and it is unlikely to see any payment plan before mid next year, furthermore, the Bangladeshi government has been stalling an announcement to increase the minimum wage to $AUD 55 per month (Butler & Hammadi, 2013).

Why is it that twenty years ago sweat shops were as common as they are today, why, if the developed world is so passionate about change and eradicating forced labour and poverty, do individuals still buy these clothes, governments still support these nations, and individuals are still earning less than $2 per day? What needs to change to stop this? Everybody is affected by this problem, if we demand better working conditions for garments, then the consumer pays more, and their demand does not meet this. If the demand for the product then drops whilst increasing wage and working conditions for these employees, then they are out of a job as there is no demand for them to produce anything.

An effective balance needs to be found, and sooner than later.

= Reflection =

When I first came across Yolanda Dominguez visual installation, 'fashion victims', i thought it was an intuitive piece which brought the tragedy of the Rana Plaza collapse to the retail streets of a major western city. It simply reflected the developed worlds constant desire and obsession with quick, cheap and disposable fashion, whilst juxtaposing the images that emerged in the days after the collapse of limbs and clothing protruding from the rubble of the collapse.

However, as I continued with my research and writing, I re watched the video and my thoughts changed. Many people took little notice of the women buried under the rubble, unbeknownst that it was only an art installation, many more stopped, gawked, took photos and moved on. Then there were the few who stopped to check that the individual was okay, those who looked up to see if this was a tragic accident or something less sinister, these were the few who removed the debris and checked on the individual. This surmises, societies opinions and reactions on forced labour, many will ignore that more than 1 in 8 people in the world are on less than $2 per day, they do not think, or choose not to think, where there clothing has come from or who has made it. Then there are those who stop for five minutes because they are confronted by something, the Kony effect, they observe and take in what is presented to them, maybe they tell someone else about it, they might even go and do a small bit of research for themselves, and then they forget and move on. Finally there are the few who will do something, they check on the individual, they go out of their way to do something that will have a direct effect on the person who is in trouble, these are the people who make a difference, who create change and lead it. The problem is, they are outnumbered by those that are happy to keep on walking or just take a picture instead.

**References**

 * Ahmed, I. (2013). //Let’s Show the World that Fashion is Serious Business.// Retrieved from: http://www.businessoffashion.com/2013/04/lets-show-the-world-that-fashion-is-serious-business.html
 * Butler, S. Hammadi, S. (2013, Oct 23). Rana Plaza factory disaster: victims still waiting for compensation // . // //The Guardian.// Retrieved from: []
 * Dominguez, Y. (2013, May 29). //Yolanda Dominguez - Fashion Victims// [video file]. Retrieved from: []
 * Edwards, M. (2013, Oct 25). Bangladesh's Rana Plaza factory collapse victims still awaiting compensation: survey. //ABC.// Retrieved from: []
 * Forced Labour Convention 1930 (Int). //Section 8,9,10//. Retrieved from: []
 * Freyar, L. (2013). //National Public Radio: // //Fashion's Victims - An Artist's Focus On Garment Workers // [Audio Podcast]. Retrieved from: []
 * Hussein, S. (2013, October 24). Six months after Bangladeshi factory collapse, workers remain in peril. //CNN.// Retrieved from: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/10/24/opinion/bangladesh-garment-workers/
 * Ibis World. (2013). //Clothing Retailing in Australia: Market Research Report.// Retrieved from: []
 * International Labour Organistion. (2013). //Forced labour: Facts and figures.// Retrieved from: http://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/media-centre/issue-briefs/WCMS_207611/lang--en/index.htm
 * International Labour Standards. (2013). //International Labour Standards on Forced labour//. Retrieved from: []
 * International Textile Garment and Leather workers Federation. (2011). //An overview of working conditions in sportswear factories in Indonesia,Sri Lanka & the Philippines.// Retrieved from: http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/ITGLWFSportswearReport2011.pdf
 * Kristof, N. (2004). //New York Times - Inviting all Democrats//. Retrieved from: []
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 1.5;">Meyerson, A. (2007, Jun 22). In principle, a case for more sweatshops. New York Times. Retrieved from: []
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 1.5;">The Guardian. (2011, Apr 28). //Poverty matters - Sweatshops are still supplying high street brands.// Retrieved from: []
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">World Health Organisation. (2013). //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Databank //. Retrieved from: []

Reflections

 * 1) The war on drugs is a war on us - Jack Murphy, n8607192
 * 2) Battery Hens - A different perspective - Harrison Spicer, n8846511