A Need for Change: Sweatshops One might refer to sweatshops as a living hell. This phrase may seem slightly over the top to some, but for those who have experienced the interminable, exhausting hours in a sweatshop it is an understatement. Sweatshop products are everywhere. Christmas ornaments, cotton tee shirts, cellular devices, and cigarettes are a few sweatshop items. Sweatshops are not the problem. Without them the producers would not be able to keep up with the demanding consumer society. The habits of these workplaces need to be changed on behalf of its workers. Todd Pugatch has dealt with labor economics for several years. He is currently an Economics Professor at Oregon State University. One of Mr. Pugatch’s publications is titled,
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Sweatshops have been around since the early 1800s. They were not widely popular in the early years simply because life was much different back them. Families were larger and often fended for themselves. In 1849 Charles Kingsley of England came up with the term “sweating system,” and he gave it a formal definition to please the public. He described the sweating system as: “is a surviving remnant of the industrial system which preceded the factory system, when industry was chiefly conducted on the piece-price plan, in small shops or the homes of the workers” (Pugatch). The end of slavery led to the growth of sweatshops in the United States. People slaved away for nearly forty years until the British House of Lords brought attention back to the subject. They conducted multiple investigations in factories with the sweating system. They created a list of three commonalities between the places: “1) an unduly low rate of wages; 2) excessive hours of labor; 3) insanitary state of the houses in which the work is carried on” …show more content…
The typical American works 35 to 40 hours every week. This is considered a full time job. Sweatshop employees surpass the full time minimum by as much as 63 hours. That means these women, men, and children are working up to 98 hours in a single week (“All”). Seven days a week, fourteen hours a day is typical in certain areas of the world. If one shows up late or misses the day altogether, they risk losing their position. In addition, if a worker is not meeting the productivity requirements they are viewed as worthless and also dismissed. There are no excuses for missing a day of work because the waiting list of replacement employees is never ending according the same Mother Jones article. One sweatshop in Hong Kong literally pushes their workers to the point of death. Neal Conan, Talk of the Nation radio host, had a sweatshop expert call in. Ms. Thomas reports: “a worker had dropped dead walking out of the factory having worked 72 hours straight.” Three full days with no sleep what so ever, and then he lay dead on the road. The worker physically and mentally had endured more than possible. A reasonable compromise would be to force sweatshops to hire more employees. They would be required to work seven-hour shifts instead of 14-hour shifts. This would ultimately increase the rate of production because workers function better on more sleep. The companies would not suffer any loss because the monthly wages would just
Sweatshops have been around since the early 1800s. They were not widely popular in the early years simply because life was much different back them. Families were larger and often fended for themselves. In 1849 Charles Kingsley of England came up with the term “sweating system,” and he gave it a formal definition to please the public. He described the sweating system as: “is a surviving remnant of the industrial system which preceded the factory system, when industry was chiefly conducted on the piece-price plan, in small shops or the homes of the workers” (Pugatch). The end of slavery led to the growth of sweatshops in the United States. People slaved away for nearly forty years until the British House of Lords brought attention back to the subject. They conducted multiple investigations in factories with the sweating system. They created a list of three commonalities between the places: “1) an unduly low rate of wages; 2) excessive hours of labor; 3) insanitary state of the houses in which the work is carried on” …show more content…
The typical American works 35 to 40 hours every week. This is considered a full time job. Sweatshop employees surpass the full time minimum by as much as 63 hours. That means these women, men, and children are working up to 98 hours in a single week (“All”). Seven days a week, fourteen hours a day is typical in certain areas of the world. If one shows up late or misses the day altogether, they risk losing their position. In addition, if a worker is not meeting the productivity requirements they are viewed as worthless and also dismissed. There are no excuses for missing a day of work because the waiting list of replacement employees is never ending according the same Mother Jones article. One sweatshop in Hong Kong literally pushes their workers to the point of death. Neal Conan, Talk of the Nation radio host, had a sweatshop expert call in. Ms. Thomas reports: “a worker had dropped dead walking out of the factory having worked 72 hours straight.” Three full days with no sleep what so ever, and then he lay dead on the road. The worker physically and mentally had endured more than possible. A reasonable compromise would be to force sweatshops to hire more employees. They would be required to work seven-hour shifts instead of 14-hour shifts. This would ultimately increase the rate of production because workers function better on more sleep. The companies would not suffer any loss because the monthly wages would just