NIke Sweatshop Picture

Stop NIke Sweatshops

LETS STOP THIS TRAGEDY.

Nike Slavery

NIke  Slavery needs to stops!!!!!!!!!

Nike Exploitation

JUST DONT DO IT!

Nike sweatshops should not be legal in China, Indonesia, or any other country

NIKE SWEATSHOPS SHOULD NOT BE LEGAL IN CHINA, INDONESIA OR IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY

By Mary H., Whitby, Canada

Email me when Mary H. contibutes work

No person should be without their human rights. Everyone should have a place to live, food to eat, clothing to wear, enough money to take care of their families and a job which pays enough for all this to happen. Sweatshops violate human rights. A sweatshop is “a shop or factory in which employees work long hours at low wages under poor conditions.” (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sweatshops). Too many humans are forced to work for little money in unsanitary and insecure working conditions in China. Many other countries around the world (mainly countries in the third-world) also have no protection from these unacceptable labour conditions.

Nike is a very well known shoe and athletic wear company. Not many people know that Nike controls many sweatshops. Nike should not be allowed to pay people less than a living wage, make them work for an outrageous amount of hours, and make them work under the present appalling laws and conditions.

A living wage is “A wage sufficient to provide minimally satisfactory living conditions.” (http://www.answers.com/living+wage&r=67). Nike employees do not even receive this small, living wage. “Nike gains this profit through the perpetuation of human suffering. The wages Nike pays are less than workers need to live on. No one can survive in the long term on Nike pay.” (http://irregulartimes.com/nike.html) Some sad facts are that some Nike employees in China receive only $1.60 each day, when three small meals a day on average costs about $2.00. In fact, it would take only 4% of Nike’s advertising money to provide all of their employees with a living wage. These workers earn only an average of 20 cents an hour. In these sweatshops, employees are not paid extra when they work forced overtime. In response to all this, Nike says, “Workers in Indonesia earn Rupiah, not dollars. Characterizing these wage packages in U.S. dollars is simply inappropriate.” (Harris, 2001) And yet, all the amounts above are not what they earn in ‘Rupiah’, but what they earn in U.S. dollars. The wages Nike provides in these sweatshops is simply intolerable.

The amount of hours Nike employees work is plainly unjust. “While labour laws say the maximum yearly overtime is 200 hours, on average Nike workers are forced to work 500+ hours per year. If workers refuse, they are punished or receive a warning. After three warnings, they’re fired.” (http://www.saigon.com/~nike/reports/hilight.doc). Nike employees work 77-84 hours per week, seven days a week. That is 11-12 hours of work each day. For all those hours, they earn only $1.60. “In 25% to 50% of Nike’s factories, work hours exceed legal limit.” (http://www.educatingforjustice.org/stopnikesweatshops.htm). These hours violate every code of conduct you could find anywhere. “The long working hours at these factories also violate Nike's own Code, which stipulates that workers work no more than 60 hours of work per week.” (http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/55/019.html). Workers are not permitted to take any breaks during these long hours of work, and are not allowed to go to the washroom more than once. When, as often is the case, employees do not complete their work for the day, they are forced to work without pay until they complete it. Nike should not be permitted to force their employees to work as long as is stated above.

Nike employees do not work in safe and sanitary working conditions. “It is a common occurrence for workers to faint from exhaustion, heat, fumes and poor nutrition during their shifts.” (http://www.saigon.com/~nike/reports/hilight.doc). There is corporal punishment in Nike factories and fining for many false reasons, such as being found talking, being pregnant, and being older than the age of 25. At Nike, they have very cruel and unique punishments. “56 women workers at a Nike factory were forced to run around the factory’s premise in the hot sun because they weren’t wearing regulation shoes. 12 fainted during the run and were taken to the hospital.” (http://www.saigon.com/~nike/reports/hilight.doc). “15 Vietnamese women were hit over the head by their supervisor for poor sewing. 2 were sent to the hospital afterward.” (http://www.saigon.com/~nike/fact-sheet.htm). In an average Nike factory, there are approximately ten children in the sewing section alone. Nike replies “The way we approach business is simple-relentless improvement.” (Harris, 2001), but according to the facts above, either Nike isn’t telling the full truth or they aren’t improving enough. The working conditions of Nike are unbearable, as they make work painful for their employees.

In conclusion, Nike does not provide a beneficial working environment for its employees, through its low wages, the unbelievably long working hours, and through the dreadful working conditions. In no country should Nike sweatshops be legal. Nike is abusing its power, and it has to stop!

Behind the Swoosh

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In America, Nike's owners see the abuse much differently. In front of hundreds of shareholders, after announcing record earnings and another stock split, Nike's president and CEO, Phil Knight minimized the problems in Asia as simply an incident in which a single worker was hit over the head by a supervisor. Nike spokesperson Jim Small, while knowing that the conditions in the sixteen Indonesian plants are not ideal, said, "The bottom line is: Do we abuse our workers? Absolutely not." (Levy, "Working conditions protested at the opening of a new store). Roberta Baskin of CBS News commented that, "It turns out Nike has a great deal to learn about what goes on inside these factories." (The Nike Story in Vietnam, Internet). There are laws that protect the workers in Indonesia from on-the-job injuries with compensation money. However, there was a woman who lost some fingers, which had been crushed in a machine at a Nike factory. The total compensation that the worker was paid was only $25 because she had an injury, which made her no longer employable (Interview with Max White, Internet).
Nike spends between $250-$280 million dollars a year on athletic endorsements. Nike's total annual payroll at six Indonesian factories is less than what Nike pays superstar Michael Jordan per year. A pair of Nike's top-of the-line running shoe, the Air Max shoe retails for $140. Nike admits that the direct labor cost to produce the shoe is about $3.50, which doesn't account for Nike's marketing or distribution costs.
It is not that Nike can't afford to pay it's workers more, they just don't choose to. It is just recently that the public found out and began to pressure Nike to raise wages. Wages have gone up a little bit, but not good enough for the leading sports shoe manufacturer. Nike can still do a lot better.
Nike is being used as a pressure point for the cheap labor scam that is taking place in the Third World Countries today. Nike is also by far the most popular brand of shoes and apparel company in it's industry. This is why the consumers are hoping to help Nike change it's policies. Nike has already suffered greatly from many consumers because of their approach and methods of making their products. This will hopefully make an impact and Nike will lead the way to rid the world of cheap labor.

Nike's Cheap Labor

by Tim Glenn

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Many billion dollar shoe companies prefer not to do their own manufacturing. They subcontract production with foreign businesses in Asia where workers receive rock bottom wages. The shoe companies that are participating in this cheap act include Nike, Reebok, Adidas, Puma, Hi-Tec, and many others. All of these companies stick to their own advertising, product development, and distribution while contracting Third World factories to produce their products.
No company is paying or treating their workers better than another. This is because in an Asian factory you will see the rival brands rolling off parallel conveyor belts in the same factory. I have chosen to concentrate on Nike instead of other brands because Nike is the leader in its industry, not only in terms of market share, but in design, comfort, and advertising. Where Nike goes, other companies tend to follow.
In 1984 the $5.2 billion dollar Nike Corp. closed its last U.S. factory and moved its entire production to the cheap labor in Asia. Some 65,000 Nike U.S. shoe workers lost their jobs because of the move over seas (Putnam, Internet). Making these sport shoes does benefit developing countries. It brings money, jobs, and some skills are shared. However, Nike's target is not so. As Taiwan and South Korea democratized, unions became legal, and wages began to rise, Nike immediately began to look for new undeveloped havens of low wages. New operations were set up in Indonesia, China, Vietnam, Pakistan, and Thailand. Nike now has a work force of only 8,000 employees. The 350,000 people who make their shoes in Asia (Hua, "Nike Protest Charges Abuses of Employees.") are employed by subcontractors, not Nike.
In the past couple of years Nike has taken in and responded to criticism of its contractors' factories with a number of initiatives. The first one was their Code of Conduct for their contractors. The second was the hiring of Ernst and Young to independently monitor the Code of Conduct. Most recently, Nike has announced their plan to form a dedicated labor practices department (Connor and Atkinson, "Labour conditions in the sport shoe industry.") Nike's primary defense to charges of abuse of workers is that they do not own the Asian factories. They are run by subcontractors and they say they don't have control over them, even though Nike has control over each and every stitch that goes on in each product line.
Most of the shoe workers in Asia are teenagers and unmarried young women from ages 17 to 30. The average worker produces 4.3 pairs of shoes a day (Brookes and Madden, Internet.), and only gets the minimum wage of $2.50 a day in Indonesia. The daily livable wage in Indonesia is between $4.00 to 4.50, (Tanaka, "Protesters lace Nike labor practices.") yet Nike still pays minimum wage to the workers who make the shoes that sell for over $100. Certain conditions in Vietnam are even worse. Workers only make an average of 20 cents per hour, or $1.60 a day, when the cost of eating three simple meals is $2.10 (Nguyen, e-mail) plus other expenses such as shelter.
About sixty to seventy percent of Nike's overseas workers rent a room in the Nike dormitories. The rooms are all identical, one-story barrack like buildings which face each other in rows. The rooms are three meters by three meters, which are made of concrete walls and floors, where two or three young women live. Along with the small area to live in, a large number of people all use the same toilet and laundry facilities because the rooms are not equipped with these (Connor and Atkinson, "Labour conditions sport shoe industry").
The 30 to 40 percent of the workers that cannot fit in the dormitories live in very small run-down rooms, with someone else to keep the cost down. They do not own a mattress or a bed, so they sleep on the concrete or dirt floor (Goodman, "Slavery plain and simple").
Renting a room in Indonesia costs at least $6.00 a month. Clothing has to be purchased, and every now and then the workers have to buy a bar of soap and toothpaste. To stretch the paycheck, something has to be cut. Despite the constant hunger, it is usually the food (Herbert, e-mail).
In Indonesia no labor union may negotiate on behalf of its' workers without gaining government permission. Because of this, when Nike workers attempt even the most minimal organizing of a strike, Nike's contractors call in the military (Nike in Indonesia company seeks repressive situations, Internet). Since the military is on a payroll and is located less than 10 minutes away from the factories (Interview with Max White, Internet), it doesn't take long to settle things down. Not only is the military called in, but any workers that are fighting back against the low wages and abusive conditions are automatically fired.
Despite all of the illegal aspects of strikes in some of the Third World Countries, Indonesia and Vietnam had some very recently. In Indonesia workers burned cars and ransacked offices because they claimed the company wasn't paying them the $2.50 daily minimum wage. Nearly half of the 10,000 workers who work at the Tangerang factory, participated in the demonstration. On the same day, in Vietnam about 3,000 workers unhappy with their contract walked off the job for the day. It was one of the largest strikes in the nations' recent history (Hill, "Nike plant shuts after workers protest").
Many Nike shoe makers have complained about forced overtime. A quota is set for each worker, and if they don't reach it, they have to work unpaid overtime hours to make up for their slow work. Some workers complained that that the quota is set even higher whenever they reach it. This unfair system gives a new meaning to the Nike slogan "There is no finishing line" (Brookes and Madden, Internet).
Two factories operated a policy of employing workers with a training wage for the maximum of a 120 days, then laying them off to save money on fringe benefits and permanent employees. The long hours are just as unfair as well. Vietnam's labor laws say that the maximum number of overtime hours a year is 200. Nike workers are forced to work 500+ hours per year. If the workers refuse to work these long and hard hours, they are punished and receive a warning. Three warnings and they are fired (Brookes and Madden, Internet).
Many Asians think business is a lot like war. Nike's labor practices promote poverty, poor nutrition, frequent headaches, general fatigue, and neglect for the children of the workers (Nike: Nothing Has Changed, Internet). Many people may think that the factories are in bad shape. When actually Nike's factories are very well lit and clean because you can't make quality shoes in a rundown shack.
Nike and several other sporting goods giants announced a campaign to stop the production of soccer balls made by Pakistani children who work 10 hours a day and only earning pennies for it. Child welfare organizations estimate that 7,000 to 10,000 Pakistani children under the age of fourteen stitch soccer balls in their homes and small shops. Nike has taken drastic measures to stop child labor by making plans to build fifteen "stitching centers" over the next three years to put an end to the homemade soccer balls. (Newberry, "Companies kick out child-made soccer balls).
Not only are the wages low, but Nike workers have to put up with sexual and physical abuse. Several cases of abuse include: workers being locked inside a cage and placed before the entire compound for display (Chan, "Boot Camp at the Shoe Factory); workers being hit over the head by supervisors for poor workmanship; workers forced to kneel with their hands in the air for 15 minutes; workers having their mouths taped for talking; workers called dogs; workers cussed at; workers beaten over the head for poor sewing; workers hit in the face with rubber soles because the manager made a mistake in color; workers being shot with rubber bullets; workers forced to stand in the hot sun for extended periods while writing their mistakes again and again, like schoolchildren (Herbert, e-mail).
Women workers have complained about frequent sexual harassment from foreign supervisors. Even in broad daylight, in front of many other workers, these supervisors try to rub, touch, or grab female workers in their chests and buttocks (Nguyen, e-mail). Workers have also reported that the prettiest girls in each section are chosen by the managers as administrative assistants. The decision only has to do with looks, not how well the person works. The administrative assistants are sometimes sexually harassed and even molested by the managers and supervisors (Connor and Atkinson, "Labour conditions in the sport shoe industry").

F.B.E.A