What are Sweatshops?

In our time we do not often call labor with close to no pay as slavery. But just because no one utter the word, slave-like conditions do exist. A sweatshop, for example, is a place where products are produced by workers who labor under slave like condition. They are common where cheap cloth- and textile- productions are.

The definition of what sweatshops are is a little unclear. There is no single definition, but the most common way of explaining what sweatshops are is a working place that violates two or more labor laws. Some of the laws are those against child labor, too long working hours and low salaries.

The employees at these sweatshops are stuck in a vicious circle that is very hard to get out of. They have close to no money, so they are in desperate need of a job. In a country where a lot of people are poor and unemployed, work opportunities are scarce. If they are able to get an employment, they will do almost anything to hang on to that job. These employees put up with dangerous working environments, abuse and low wages. The salaries they earn are sometimes not even enough to cover their expenses and they then end up in dept to their employers. The workers therefore have no chance to save money for the future in order to get a better job and higher living standards. They will have to work inhumanly long days for minimum wage without any hope of ever getting out of the vicious circle. This because there is no other place for them to go in their search for employment.

The products made in sweatshops are many. Among others are shoes, cloths, and textiles.

China is one country that has a lot of sweatshops, especially within the shoe- and cloth- industry. Nike is one of the biggest names in the sport-shoe industry. They are also one of the most criticized companies within the business, because of their extensive use of sweatshops in the production. Nike has because of this, received a lot of attention in the media and from the public, so there is a lot of information about the company. The major sport-shoe maker Nike is therefore a good example if you are to tell how a company use the sweatshops and why.