Sweatshops Should Not Exist In Developing Countries

Sweatshops Should Not Exist In Developing Countries

INTRODUCTION

The issue of large multinationals and other business organizations establishing sweatshops in developing countries continues to draw both complements and criticism. Some people feel that these establishments are necessary for the continued socioeconomic development of these countries, but in essence, this is not 1915. While such labor establishments provide much-needed employment and financial relief for less affluent societies, every employee in the modern world has a right to clean, safe, and considerate working conditions. Therefore, sweatshops should never exist, leave alone starting them in developing countries where economic conditions have bred desperation.

THE RATIONALE BEHIND SWEATSHOPS

Running businesses in the modern context is a hard prospect due to several reasons. One of them is the cutthroat competition that characterizes modern businesses. Unlike two or three decades where most businesses were comfortable in terms of market competitiveness, many businesses have risen to the occasion and enacted effective growth and profitability strategies. Every industry has many companies all competing with near-similar products for customer attention and sales. Therefore, the running costs have to be reduced in order for such business operations to continue making sense. Unfortunately, many such business target employee welfare and labor costs in the process of cutting down running costs.

Sweatshops are essentially large-scale factories that process large quantities of business goods or services at relatively low labor costs. Most sweatshops are able to achieve these low labor costs by reducing payment, getting rid of employee benefits such as health insurance and housing allowance, and reducing workplace amenities such as air conditioning and food or beverage costs. Such working environments usually work in countries that are not developed and have large populations leading to economic desperation.

The proponents of this mode of employment argue that less developed countries should not complain about the working conditions and lack of employee benefits because of the employment opportunity. Due to the existence of many workers and few jobs, these people argue that such societies should work with what is available as their political and socioeconomic structures improve towards first-world status. Most technocrats even go as far as suggesting that many less developed Asian and African countries earn a significant amount of tax revenue from the sweatshop labor model because it creates more work opportunities in countries where unemployment is rife.

SWEATSHOPS ARE ILLEGAL AND UNETHICAL

While some proponents of the continued establishment of sweatshops continue to place emphasis on the marginal socioeconomic benefits such establishments accord the workers that cannot be the only focus point. Unfortunately, many large and medium-sized business organizations currently operating have no problem cutting corners for extra productivity and financial gain. Multinationals such as Nike and Apple have come under sharp criticism in the past for running sweatshops in which they make some components of their products. These business organizations have many factories in East Asian countries such as China and Vietnam where they make small but repetitive components for electronics and apparel. Ironically, such large and rich companies still find it prudent to take advantage of the cheap labor in some Asian countries that have also come under fire for child labor. This sad state of affairs demonstrates the current focus among business organizations on profit at the expense of employee welfare.

Business ethics dictate that a business owner must take good care of their most precious asset – the employees. The business owners must ensure these employees work in a safe environment that protects their health and physical safety. This involved providing them ergonomic equipment for them to use while sitting or standing. The workplace should also have the right climatic conditions, which could mean air conditioning in some extreme working conditions. Additionally, all workers whose job descriptions place them in danger of physical or mental harm should be provided with health insurance and safety equipment. Unfortunately, sweatshops do not include these considerations into their design, because the main objective is high production with minimal costs. Such business practices are unethical and illegal in many parts of the world.

Modern business practices should be ethical and considerate. They should not be intent on exploiting less fortunate societies for financial gains as that constitutes greed and selfishness. Therefore, sweatshops should be eliminated as they also breed crimes such as child labor and sexual harassment at the workplace. Instead of sweatshops, business organizations can consider establishing proper factories with ethical and considerate working environments. Such working environments not only motivate employees towards increased productivity, but also attract more business opportunities because many businesses are shunning such vices.

CONCLUSION

Sweatshops are just wrong from an ethical perspective. Business operations that are devoid of ethics fail due to the slow entry of vices such as greed, fraud, and even harassment. These unethical establishments take advantage of the socioeconomic plight in some underdeveloped parts of the world to boost financial gains and productivity. Imagine yourself working in a dimly lit, humid, and hot factory where there are dangerous fumes. There are no safety masks, nor lunch or coffee breaks, while the supervisors constantly harass workers and the pay is unfairly low. What would you feel like, especially if the parent company is rich enough to afford better working conditions for its employees, but it keeps ignoring their plight for the sake of profits?