Better to buy from sweat shops and support 3rd world slightly or from own country?

Question

I know that ideally it would be good to buy from these ethical clothing companies but I really can't afford to. So is it better to buy from the cheap companies who employ workers and pay them rubbish money so at least they have work, or just buy from local places?

Answer 1

No dont buy from sweatshops. These people employ workers as cheaply as possible and would continue to do so. Anymoney you sent would go into the pockets of the exploiters. Not only that they would regard your custom as approval of their methods.

Answer 2

Don't buy products from sweatshops, although you may feel like you're giving the workers there an income, most of the profits go to the owners and managers of these places, and the workers will receive a pittance, and sometimes nothing at all. Unfortunately, many designer companies still have their clothing made by poor workers in horrific conditions, because it means that they make absolutely massive profits, as the workers earn only a tiny fraction of what we would make doing the same job in this country. Basically what this means is that they are not only supporting the exploitation of foreign workers, but they are not making these positions available to workers in our country because it would mean they would have to pay a minimum wage. There attitude is, why pay minimum wage to a citizen of your own country when you can have the stuff made by poor foreign workers who will work twice as many hours in the day and for a fraction of the money... all the more profits for the greedy corporations. My advice: save up and buy 1 or 2 items from ethical companies rather than 3 or 4 items from unethical companies. And find out which of the cheaper clothing companies actually pays workers a fair wage, sick pay, overtime rates etc.

Thank you for caring.

Answer 3

If sweatshops were really easy to identify, we could single them out and not buy their products. Certainly there is a lot of exploitation of workers when the government turns a blind eye as they do in many third world countries. But there is also the extreme idea that workers all over the globe deserve equal wages. Do you know that a very good restaurant lunch in a small town in western China will cost you about 30 cents American? Rents are on the same scale and almost all other daily living costs are also. By that scale of economics, city garbage collectors there should need to earn about 2 dollars a day to make a living equivalent to an American garbage collector-- and they do.

Answer 4

I have a news flash. The clothing manufacturers' workers are exploited and underpaid whether the clothes are constructed in foreign countries or right here in the USA. USA labor laws protect the workers here in theory, but the truth is that the Labor Dept. does very little to enforce the labor standards, and workers in sweatshops right under our noses in New York, Philadelphia, L.A., etc., (as well as much smaller cities) are underpaid and working contrary to the laws of the land. The clothing industry is rife with corporate greed and low-wage workers who don't know their rights or don't stand up for their rights, thus being exploited en masse. So virtually any clothing you buy anywhere is going to be tainted by the fact that the workers who made them were exploited in sweatshops.

Answer 5

I don't like to support anything like sweatshops or child labour, but it's increasingly difficult to find any clothes made in the UK, let alone cheaply. I wouldn't say it supports the 3rd world anyway, as it's more likely to be developed countries, like Pakistan and Taiwan. To help poorer countries, think about buying fair trade products from Oxfam,(you can get a catalogue) and fairly traded groceries from the Co-op. It's good that you care :)

Answer 6

I buy what I can afford and don't bother were its from anymore, I was part of a 'Buy British' protest march in the 80's to try to help save jobs in this country and to try and stop the exploitation abroad, no one took any notice then and look were we are now, more and more of our jobs are going abroad, cheap imports are coming in thick and fast, people are paid peanuts and the fats cats of this world don't give a hoot, sorry but neither do I now.

Answer 7

If there were no 3rd world sweat shops there would be loads of people unable to work.

If you pay people in third world countries the same wage as locals, then you might as well just make goods locally - putting loads of people out of work.

Answer 8

This is the same technique I have taught over 138,000 men and women in 157 countries to successfully treat their excessive sweating condition over the past 7 years!

Remember: Watch the whole video, as the ending will pleasantly surprise you�

Answer 9

Own country, as you will be helping own countries SMEs. Good for the economy and ensures that you don't end up living in a 3rd world country.

Answer 10

i dont think that by buying more in one place would make a difference to anyone other than the shop owner to be honest.
i just buy from where i am at the time.
nice thought though.