I've talked about Fair Trade and ethical consumerism extensively and I've been happy to report that I now have a handle on which consumables and clothes retailers I can count on to provide me with the peace of mind that comes with knowing my purchase supported a fair wage for others.
The next phase of my mission is to find electronics that are ethical but this is really hard y'all! I've made my dislike of Apple very clear but the truth is ALL ELECTRONICS get their pieces from overseas factories and nearly all these factories have deplorable working conditions.
I'm currently feeling overwhelmed because I can't get away from it! With my coffee, chocolate, and my clothing I was able to step back but with electronics it is impossible unless you go completely off the grid! I don't know about y'all but I like the grid (maybe not so much as some...you know who you are...new tweets every 10 minutes, FB status updates on what you ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner...).
For example, I have been going back and forth about buying a Kindle. Let's look at the pros and cons shall we?
Pros: Very green. I can purchase my textbooks and save not only paper but fuel and carbon emissions because they won't need to ship anything.
Cons: Horrible working conditions for the people that make them. By buying one, I am supporting this business model.
Talk about cognitive dissonance! I can help save the environment while contributing to abject conditions for human beings. I don't know y'all, I'm kinda sad and frustrated. I hope that we now move towards a fair trade mentality with our electronics.
A good article to read on this:
Fair Trade Electronics?
A wonderful segment on this issue:
Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory
What do y'all think? Would you buy electronics if they were fair trade?
- A
Showing posts with label corporate ethics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label corporate ethics. Show all posts
Friday, January 13, 2012
Monday, April 11, 2011
Gap, inc.
Ah the Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy. Three of my favorite stores to shop at. I love their styling, great sales, and commercials (the Gap holiday commercials are always super fun!).
I haven't been there in a couple of months, since before the 30 for 30 challenge as I wanted to investigate their business practices before I went back.
The Gap brand was founded in 1969 and experienced tremendous growth in a short amount of time. Like many retailers, it turned to factories overseas to meet demand. It was not until 1992 that the company outlined a code of sourcing guidelines to ensure ethical practices. The responsibility for enforcement of these guidelines, however, was up to the suppliers so Gap did not have a direct hand in controlling the factories (like many large companies). In 1996, after finding violations in several factories, Gap decided to make their own compliance team that oversees the application of their guidelines (but the factories still remain independent contractors). Since then, Gap, inc has been identified as the most ethical company by the Ethisphere Institute several times (2007-2009, 2011).
To be honest, as I was researching this I was skeptical. My skepticism grew when I couldn't find one negative piece of information regarding Gap's practices. I mean, come on, this is big business we're talking about here! Surely they have done something wrong at some point!
Then, aha! I found it! Gap, like many retailers (see: Forever21) put pressure on factories to produce at a rapid pace, which in turn caused the factory owners/managers to put pressure on the workers through unethical means (long hours, low pay). Where did I find this information? Why Gap's Social Responsibility report! So wait, they called themselves out? That is unheard of in big business. Adding to Gap's halo is the fact that every time concerns have been raised (such as child labor) they have responded immediately but not by denying or letting legal take over but by being honest and dealing with the situation by sending out their compliance team to resolve the issue.
Bottom line: I'm pleased that I can continue to shop at my favorite retailer, however, as an enlightened consumer (as I endeavor to be) I know that public pressure/demand for ethical practices counts for a lot so I feel that we should applaud Gap, inc but also remain vigilant about any problems as they arise. CEOs will change and with them business practices may as well so keep apprised of the situation folks!
Resources:
CSRWire
Ethical Corporation
How wonderful is it to be able to shop at a mainstream store and know that the money you are spending is contributing to fair practices! How about you? Do you shop at any one of the Gap, inc stores?
- A
The Gap brand was founded in 1969 and experienced tremendous growth in a short amount of time. Like many retailers, it turned to factories overseas to meet demand. It was not until 1992 that the company outlined a code of sourcing guidelines to ensure ethical practices. The responsibility for enforcement of these guidelines, however, was up to the suppliers so Gap did not have a direct hand in controlling the factories (like many large companies). In 1996, after finding violations in several factories, Gap decided to make their own compliance team that oversees the application of their guidelines (but the factories still remain independent contractors). Since then, Gap, inc has been identified as the most ethical company by the Ethisphere Institute several times (2007-2009, 2011).
To be honest, as I was researching this I was skeptical. My skepticism grew when I couldn't find one negative piece of information regarding Gap's practices. I mean, come on, this is big business we're talking about here! Surely they have done something wrong at some point!
Then, aha! I found it! Gap, like many retailers (see: Forever21) put pressure on factories to produce at a rapid pace, which in turn caused the factory owners/managers to put pressure on the workers through unethical means (long hours, low pay). Where did I find this information? Why Gap's Social Responsibility report! So wait, they called themselves out? That is unheard of in big business. Adding to Gap's halo is the fact that every time concerns have been raised (such as child labor) they have responded immediately but not by denying or letting legal take over but by being honest and dealing with the situation by sending out their compliance team to resolve the issue.
Bottom line: I'm pleased that I can continue to shop at my favorite retailer, however, as an enlightened consumer (as I endeavor to be) I know that public pressure/demand for ethical practices counts for a lot so I feel that we should applaud Gap, inc but also remain vigilant about any problems as they arise. CEOs will change and with them business practices may as well so keep apprised of the situation folks!
Resources:
CSRWire
Ethical Corporation
How wonderful is it to be able to shop at a mainstream store and know that the money you are spending is contributing to fair practices! How about you? Do you shop at any one of the Gap, inc stores?
- A
Friday, April 8, 2011
Walmart part deux
All right folks, it is time to discuss Walmart's actions outside of the United States. I've already spoken about Walmart's unethical actions within the U.S. As you probably know, Walmart imports a lot of products. Walmart contracts with foreign factories to produce goods for their stores. While Walmart doesn't directly own or operate these factories, their actions indirectly create the circumstances for ethical violations to occur and to continue unchecked.
Walmart, in an effort to keep prices low, puts pressure on the factories to produce items at a certain cost or they'll walk. The factory is left with two (both equally unsavory) options: close down the factory when Walmart cancels the contract or lower prices to Walmart's standards by lowering working standards and pay for the workers. There have been numerous lawsuits filed by these workers against Walmart. According to Global Exchange,
Just last week, the Supreme Court heard arguments on the case of Dukes v. Walmart. A group of women from Walmart's operations around the world banded together to hold Walmart accountable for allegedly discriminating against female employees. The hearing was to determine if the women could be classified as a 'class' and if so, this would be the largest class action lawsuit in history. In typical large corporation style, this case has been dragged out for 11 years, according to Walmart Watch.
So the question at hand: is Walmart really culpable in the mistreatment of the workers producing its wares although it does not own the factories? I definitely think so because Walmart is a large corporation with a lot of power, which it knows. It regularly uses this power to knowingly manipulate vendors. When faced with financial ruin, these companies turn to ethical compromise which is not OK either. This is a systems problem, starting at the top.
Let's not forget that we, the consumers, are part of this system as well. As those of you who know system theory, a change in any part of the system causes the entire system to change. In other words, small change can lead to big change. You can do something.
Resources:
Students Against Sweatshops
International Labor Rights Forum
- A
Walmart, in an effort to keep prices low, puts pressure on the factories to produce items at a certain cost or they'll walk. The factory is left with two (both equally unsavory) options: close down the factory when Walmart cancels the contract or lower prices to Walmart's standards by lowering working standards and pay for the workers. There have been numerous lawsuits filed by these workers against Walmart. According to Global Exchange,
In September 2005, the International Labor Rights Fund filed a lawsuit on behalf of Wal-Mart supplier sweatshop workers in China, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Nicaragua and Swaziland. The workers were denied minimum wages, forced to work overtime without compensation, and were denied legally mandated health care. Other worker rights violations that have been found in foreign factories that produce goods for Wal-Mart include locked bathrooms, starvation wages, pregnancy tests, denial of access to health care, and workers being fired and blacklisted if they try to defend their rights.
Just last week, the Supreme Court heard arguments on the case of Dukes v. Walmart. A group of women from Walmart's operations around the world banded together to hold Walmart accountable for allegedly discriminating against female employees. The hearing was to determine if the women could be classified as a 'class' and if so, this would be the largest class action lawsuit in history. In typical large corporation style, this case has been dragged out for 11 years, according to Walmart Watch.
So the question at hand: is Walmart really culpable in the mistreatment of the workers producing its wares although it does not own the factories? I definitely think so because Walmart is a large corporation with a lot of power, which it knows. It regularly uses this power to knowingly manipulate vendors. When faced with financial ruin, these companies turn to ethical compromise which is not OK either. This is a systems problem, starting at the top.
Let's not forget that we, the consumers, are part of this system as well. As those of you who know system theory, a change in any part of the system causes the entire system to change. In other words, small change can lead to big change. You can do something.
Resources:
Students Against Sweatshops
International Labor Rights Forum
- A
Friday, March 25, 2011
Fast is not fab
I think we can all agree that sweatshops are bad. Working people long hard hours while paying them little and forcing them to work in uncomfortable conditions is deplorable. How lucky are we that we live in the United States where we don't have to deal with this issue, right? Wrong. Today, in continuation of my retail series, I'll be talking about Forever21, the 'fast fashion' giant that has garnered criticism of the treatment of its workers.
The garment production industry is big business in California. Forever21 has been accused of (and documented through interviews with employees) running sweatshops in the state. According to 39th & Broadway, Forever21 employs Mexican immigrant labor because it is cheap. With this comes the sub par conditions in which they are working: no running water, no bathroom, rats, and cockroaches. Apparently paying them very little and abusing their workforce in the United States is not even, oh no. Forever21 employs millions of employees around the world, like India, where the labor is even cheaper and the ethical violations even greater.
As we all know, Forever21 constantly updates its offerings; in the world of 'fast fashion', you've got to be the quickest, with the newest, shiniest thing, and Forever21 certainly delivers. The result of this is their workforce is forced to work overtime, unpaid! Workers may even have to take work home, again, unpaid! Forever21 is the bad guy here, but the store is really a symptom of a greater problem: our insatiable appetite for new things fast.
Like many retailers, Forever21 can certainly afford to pay their workers better and provide more comfortable working conditions, but as is always with corporate greed, the goal is to minimize spending, which starts at the bottom: the workers. The pyramid below illustrates this well.
(Source)
Again, unionizing is very important and the documentary Made in L.A. follows three women who fought for years to get Forever21 to change their labor practices. Has anything changed? Forever21 would like to say yes but there is still a long way to go. Change is not going to come out of the goodness of their heart as it is a business, it has no heart. Change has to be demanded and I choose to not shop there until significant progress is made.
The garment production industry is big business in California. Forever21 has been accused of (and documented through interviews with employees) running sweatshops in the state. According to 39th & Broadway, Forever21 employs Mexican immigrant labor because it is cheap. With this comes the sub par conditions in which they are working: no running water, no bathroom, rats, and cockroaches. Apparently paying them very little and abusing their workforce in the United States is not even, oh no. Forever21 employs millions of employees around the world, like India, where the labor is even cheaper and the ethical violations even greater.
As we all know, Forever21 constantly updates its offerings; in the world of 'fast fashion', you've got to be the quickest, with the newest, shiniest thing, and Forever21 certainly delivers. The result of this is their workforce is forced to work overtime, unpaid! Workers may even have to take work home, again, unpaid! Forever21 is the bad guy here, but the store is really a symptom of a greater problem: our insatiable appetite for new things fast.
Like many retailers, Forever21 can certainly afford to pay their workers better and provide more comfortable working conditions, but as is always with corporate greed, the goal is to minimize spending, which starts at the bottom: the workers. The pyramid below illustrates this well.
(Source)Again, unionizing is very important and the documentary Made in L.A. follows three women who fought for years to get Forever21 to change their labor practices. Has anything changed? Forever21 would like to say yes but there is still a long way to go. Change is not going to come out of the goodness of their heart as it is a business, it has no heart. Change has to be demanded and I choose to not shop there until significant progress is made.
Additional Resources:
- A
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Wally world
My series on retailers begins with the most villainized: Walmart! Walmart is the largest retailer in the world, operating nearly 9,000 stores worldwide (source). Why has Walmart become so villainized? Many many reasons which is why I'm splitting the information into two separate posts. Today we'll talk about Walmart's unethical practices within the United States.
Walmart, like many large corporations, frowns upon unions. All employees must sign away their rights to join a union. What does this mean? Should you be mistreated, poorly paid, and ignored, who do you turn to? Walmart has been slammed with numerous lawsuits. Just to name a few: gender discrimination, sexual orientation discrimination, and racial discrimination. What Walmart, and many large corporations, know is that should these unhappy employees become organized (i.e. unionize), they become a force to be reckoned with. They would then have to increase wages and engage in fair practices and who wants that, right? Walmart is notorious for their union busting tactics. If they catch wind of anything they will exert pressure on individuals to prevent them from organizing.
What kind of pressure? It all begins when the Labor Relations teams come into the stores, holding meetings where they berate unions, presenting only one side of the issue. Team members leave scared and confused about unions, only having heard one opinion. Union activists are banned from stores so they never do get to hear the benefits of unionizing.
Other underhanded tactics include management eavesdropping on employees, threatening employees with pay cuts, benefit loss, or even job loss should they organize. According to Human Rights Watch,
So what can we do? As I've said before (and sure I'll say again many many times) our money is the most powerful tool we hold. Every time we buy something, we are casting a vote. If you choose to stop shopping at Walmart, you're letting them know that this behavior is not ok.
Let's go one step further. Business is business. While Walmart has made steps as of late to remedy some of their issues, they will not willingly become as ethical as you or I would like. The only way they will do that is if they have to, i.e. laws. There are many movements active right now regarding changing labor laws so that corporations cannot do all the things Walmart is accused of. While I believe in the goodness of people, business is all about the bottom line so we shouldn't expect Walmart (or any other business) to change because they want to 'be good'; we have to force change or it won't happen.
Resources:
WakeUpWalmart
UFCW
Human Rights Watch
- A
Walmart, like many large corporations, frowns upon unions. All employees must sign away their rights to join a union. What does this mean? Should you be mistreated, poorly paid, and ignored, who do you turn to? Walmart has been slammed with numerous lawsuits. Just to name a few: gender discrimination, sexual orientation discrimination, and racial discrimination. What Walmart, and many large corporations, know is that should these unhappy employees become organized (i.e. unionize), they become a force to be reckoned with. They would then have to increase wages and engage in fair practices and who wants that, right? Walmart is notorious for their union busting tactics. If they catch wind of anything they will exert pressure on individuals to prevent them from organizing.
What kind of pressure? It all begins when the Labor Relations teams come into the stores, holding meetings where they berate unions, presenting only one side of the issue. Team members leave scared and confused about unions, only having heard one opinion. Union activists are banned from stores so they never do get to hear the benefits of unionizing.
Other underhanded tactics include management eavesdropping on employees, threatening employees with pay cuts, benefit loss, or even job loss should they organize. According to Human Rights Watch,
"Wal-Mart’s relentless anti-union drumbeat creates a climate of fear at its US stores. Many workers are convinced that they will suffer dire consequences if they form a union, in part because they do not hear pro-union views. Many are also afraid that if they defy their powerful employer by organizing, they could face retaliation, even firing. Human Rights Watch found that Wal-Mart heightens this fear with its arsenal of unlawful anti-union tactics. Wal-Mart has sent managers to eavesdrop on employees. According to former workers and managers at one store, it has even ordered the repositioning of surveillance cameras to monitor union supporters. It has told workers they will lose benefits if they organize. The company has discriminatorily banned talk about unions and prohibited union flyer distribution, while allowing discussion of other issues and circulation of non-union materials. It has disciplined union supporters for policy violations that it has let slide for union opponents. And it has illegally fired workers for their union activity." Source
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| Source |
Why is this so important? It's important because Walmart has taken away the voice of their employees. They cannot get together and raise concern over how they're treated. Walmart loves to tout that they create tons of jobs in the United States. While they are, no doubt, a large employer, many of their employees are kept just under the requirements for benefits. According to the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UCFW), only 52% of Walmart's workforce has insurance and for those that do, it is extremely costly. Add to that the low amount they are paid in the first place and you have a significant number of their workforce who is on welfare. According to UCFW, Walmart employees are utilizing billions of dollars in benefits a year to subsidize health care that they are not receiving from Walmart. That's money out of the taxpayers' pockets.
Yes we can all argue that the people that are working at Walmart have a choice and if they pursued a better education then they wouldn't be working at Walmart. What about the small towns where Walmart is the largest employer? What about those people who can't go to college either because of financial concerns or they're just not cut out for it? Are we willing to say that these people 'deserve' to be treated this way? Maybe those are harsh words but is that not what we're indirectly saying when we don't stand up for them? Should they not, at the very least, have the right to stand up and be heard?
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| Source |
Let's go one step further. Business is business. While Walmart has made steps as of late to remedy some of their issues, they will not willingly become as ethical as you or I would like. The only way they will do that is if they have to, i.e. laws. There are many movements active right now regarding changing labor laws so that corporations cannot do all the things Walmart is accused of. While I believe in the goodness of people, business is all about the bottom line so we shouldn't expect Walmart (or any other business) to change because they want to 'be good'; we have to force change or it won't happen.
Resources:
WakeUpWalmart
UFCW
Human Rights Watch
- A
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Why you be hatin?
Most of my friends know of my disdain for Walmart. I try not to mention it because as the majority of people shop at Walmart, saying you hate it makes for awkward moments at parties.
See what I mean? I've gotten a little less intense as I do think it's unfair to attack people for shopping at certain places because most people don't know what they're buying. Sure, I like to get a good deal as much as anyone (OK probably more than anyone); just ask my friends. I don't, however, want to do it in a way that encourages bad behavior on the part of major corporations.
I've talked about this before and I'm now starting regular feature wherein I'll pick a store or brand and evaluate them from an ethical standpoint. My goal is to educate myself and hopefully enlighten you dear readers as to the options we all have to 1) look cute 2) buy cute things 3)waste money stimulate the economy 3) help support honest business practices that help the impoverished around the world rather than oppress them.
My question to you is: are there any brands or companies you would like to see reviewed? Let me know and I'll definitely try to do some digging to see what I find!
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| Source |
Me: ''Oooh those plates are cute, where'd you get them?'
'Thanks! They were a great deal! I got them from Walmart'
*Rearing head back* 'What?! I.hate.walmart. You know that they have major ethical violations all around the world, including the United States?! Those plates were probably made by some poor kid who didn't even get paid!'
*Blank look on face* 'Oh. OK. I'm sorry?'
See what I mean? I've gotten a little less intense as I do think it's unfair to attack people for shopping at certain places because most people don't know what they're buying. Sure, I like to get a good deal as much as anyone (OK probably more than anyone); just ask my friends. I don't, however, want to do it in a way that encourages bad behavior on the part of major corporations.
I've talked about this before and I'm now starting regular feature wherein I'll pick a store or brand and evaluate them from an ethical standpoint. My goal is to educate myself and hopefully enlighten you dear readers as to the options we all have to 1) look cute 2) buy cute things 3)
My question to you is: are there any brands or companies you would like to see reviewed? Let me know and I'll definitely try to do some digging to see what I find!
-A
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