By Klarizze Dela Pena
The Fashion Industry, although seen as glamorous and alluring, is the second most polluting industry in the world. Aside from this, it is a well-known endorser of child labor, having many brands and companies exposed for their unjust employment and worker treatment. It is despairing to think that the clothes we wear, may be made by abused workers in developing nations.
Every month, a new fashion trend arises. As a result, companies mass-manufacture garments that fit the new craze. The demand for trendy, cheap, and affordable clothing has continued to grow over the past decades. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that the prices for apparel are 754.41% higher in 2022 compared to 1913. Fast fashion is defined as cheap and trendy clothing that has been mass-produced and operates in low-cost labor and overseas manufacture. Unfortunately, fast fashion is commonly made by workers suffering in poor working conditions.
Fast fashion is notorious for employing children as the production of textiles and garments is low-skilled, allowing for easier exploitation. According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), approximately 170 million child laborers are forced to make these garments for unaware consumers. The fashion industry has been a booming industry for sexual exploitation and abuse, where prey comes in the form of models and workers. Children are manipulated into working for these supply chains to be the breadwinners of their low-income families. The perpetrators often try to justify the abuse, saying that the victims should be grateful for getting something, it is disheartening yet unfortunately common.
As expected, because the child workers in these supply chains are located in less-developed countries, they are not offered the best care—not even adequate. An example is the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The eight-story building served as the workplace of 3,122 factory workers, including several children under 18. The factory did not meet the safety codes nor was permitted to be built due to laying on unsuitable land, which eventually led to structural failure and the unfortunate death of 1,100 workers. The disaster illustrates the abysmal labor conditions of the workers, including low pay, sexual abuse, the dismissal of rights, the possibility of accidents due to dangerous machines and equipment, and more.
Most do not realize that several supply chains like Rana Plaza supply clothes to the big and leading companies we buy from invariably. This includes the world’s largest retailer in 2022, Shein. The $100 billion-worth company has been exposed numerous times for the poor labor conditions taking place in their factories. Molly Miao, the company’s CMO, states that Shein releases between 700 and 1,000 new items daily. We can only guess the environmental and physical effect this has; after all, you cannot magically produce and showcase hundreds of new clothing every day at the cost of nothing.
The UK-based broadcast channel, Channel 4, discovered that workers only receive a monthly base salary of 4,000 yuan, about $556. $556 is not nearly close to the amount these workers deserve or work hard for. Unfortunately, a child’s family is living off of the $556 they made from producing the clothes you might be wearing right now.
The Chinese fast-fashion retailer confirmed everyone’s claims when they investigated their factories and admitted that two of their factories breached labor violations. According to Fortune, employees work for 16-hours-long daily, are only allowed one day off a month, and only received measly wages to produce hundreds of garments for the online retailer each day.
To this day, lots of individuals promote this unethical production. Many influencers still support Shein and attend their various events and parties. Will the torture ever stop? Even if it takes decades, It is sure that advocates will continue protesting and raising these issues to save the laborers suffering halfway across the world from them. Shein, Zara, H&M, and other brands are known as affordable. We can understand why millions choose to shop there, especially those who are not well-off and rely on cheap retailers. If you want to continue shopping at Shein or other fast-fashion brands, you may. But open your eyes and recognize the mistreatment and exploitation of the brand you are endorsing—no one truly cares about these issues unless it affects them or the people they love.