WRI 102 Essay: Sweatshops - Blessing or Disguise? A Critical Analysis

This essay delves into the contentious issue of sweatshops, critically examining whether they serve as a beneficial opportunity or a veiled form of exploitation for workers. The paper argues that sweatshops, particularly in the garment industry, often violate worker welfare by imposing long hours, low wages, and hazardous working conditions, thereby depriving laborers of their fundamental human rights. While some economists view sweatshops as a necessary evil that provides employment and economic opportunities for developing nations, the essay counters this perspective, presenting evidence of widespread labor law violations, including child labor and gender inequality. The author uses multiple sources to show the adverse effects of sweatshops on workers' health, safety, and overall well-being, including increased rates of suicide and workplace accidents. The essay concludes that sweatshops are not a blessing but a disguise, and the workers receive the worst. The essay uses various sources and case studies to strengthen its arguments.

Running head: SWEATSHOPS – BLESSING OR DISGUISE
Sweatshops – Blessing or Disguise
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The paper argues on examining that sweatshops are a disguise for the citizens and
people and in this context proves that sweatshops disobeys and violates the welfare of its
workers and deprives them of their human rights. As stated by Huq, Chowdhury & Klassen
(2016, pp. 25), Sweatshops are generally classified as a factory especially in the sector of the
clothing manufacturers. The labours here are employed at a miserably poor wage for their
long hours of work and are provided with lousy working conditions which affects the health
of the workers (Hobson, 2013, pp. 318). The researchers critically examine that the working
environment provided at the sweatshops may be hazardous, burdensome and also underpaid
as compared to the risk and the long hours of work taken up by the labours. However, there
are some researches which show that sweatshops are a blessing to the under developing
citizens. As stated by Cherry (2016, pp. 577), sweatshop jobs provide above-average wages
and standard of livelihood to its workers.
As stated by Wright (2017, pp. 200), the implementation of this sweatshops was
originated long back in the era of 1830, and 1850 were many workers were directed to work
in the factory to process the production of garment making under arduous situations of the
working environment. Since then this phrase of operating under the sweatshops have
maltreated their workers and deprived of their rights. The workers are made to work in the
most adverse situations for lengthy hours of work and not getting paid as compared to the
struggle they have to face. They are even deprived of the minimum wage system and also the
over-time payment even if they work after their working hours. They provide service to the
workshop above their capability of working and are treated with the worst result they can
achieve.
Further, the study examines that there were several laws implemented that made it
mandatory for the owners of the sweatshops to provide its workers with the minimum wage
system and also that the child labour should be eliminated. However, as opined by Stephens

2SWEATSHOPS – BLESSING OR DISGUISE
(2017, pp 43), regardless of the laws being enforced the same were violated and were not
executed to provide the workers with their rights and prejudices. As mentioned in the case
study of the U.S. Department of Labour’s 2015, where factories in 18 countries were
inspected under the Fair Labour Association Annual Public Report, it was examined that all
the 18 countries failed to meet the requirements and norms of laws enforced by the
International Labour Organization (ILO) (Fisman & Golden, 2017, pp. 245).
Furthermore, some economists still argued that sweatshops are the best chance and
blessing for third-world citizens. As opined by Powell (2018, pp. 32), the sweatshops
encourage the gross economy and trade-offs of the third-world country as because they claim
that the multinational firms provide a way better amount of wage to their workers. It was
contended that sweatshops work in the view perspective of exchange liabilities. This meant
that both the employers and the workers get willingly and voluntarily into a signed contract
of the work procedure, keeping aside the factors of low wages and extra hours of work as
examined by the external observers. Therefore, the researchers termed that the sweatshops
and it's working environment is fruitful for the underdeveloped and the developing countries
and citizens.
However, the study continues with the argument that sweatshops are indeed not a
blessing, but eventually is a disguise for the workers giving their best in the sweatshops and
receiving the worst. As opined by Ireland (2017, pp. 100), it was critically stated that the
sweatshops violate the labour laws to no small extent. This statement was brought into light
when a shred of evidence showing that around 168 million children who were of just an age
of 5 to 14 years old were forced to work under the criticality of the sweatshops’ working
environment. Not only this, but it was also examined that 85-90% population of the working
people amongst the sweatshops were women (Ireland, 2017, pp. 100). The women working
were reported to be treated unequally and adversely as they were forced to consume

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medicines for birth control and also to go through regular pregnancy check-ups in the
connection of eliminating the support of providing health beneficiaries and the required
maternity leaves.
Finally, to conclude the paper, it tends to state that sweatshops have brought adverse-
affects to the work and life of the people. The workers are not satisfied in the working
environment but are still forced to work under the same harmful situations as they are left
with no other choice. It was also examined that the suicidal rate of the workers because of the
pressure and arduous treatment they are provided with is increasing to a large extent. In this
connection, it was examined that an annual rate of almost 100,000 workers working under the
sweatshops either commits suicide or die because of the unsafety working condition of the
sweatshops.

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References
Cherry, M. A. (2015). Beyond misclassification: The digital transformation of work. Comp.
Lab. L. & Pol'y J., 37, 577.
Fisman, R., & Golden, M. A. (2017). Corruption: What everyone needs to know. Oxford
University Press.
Hobson, J. (2013). To die for? The health and safety of fast fashion. Occupational
Medicine, 63(5), 317-319.
Huq, F. A., Chowdhury, I. N., & Klassen, R. D. (2016). Social management capabilities of
multinational buying firms and their emerging market suppliers: An exploratory study
of the clothing industry. Journal of Operations Management, 46, 19-37.
Ireland, R. (2017). Rights and Modern Slavery: The Obligations of States and Corporations in
Relation to Forced Labour in Global Supply Chains. UCLJLJ, 6, 100.
Powell, B. (2018). Sweatshop regulation: Tradeoffs and welfare judgements. Journal of
Business Ethics, 151(1), 29-36.
Stephens, B. (2017). The amorality of profit: transnational corporations and human rights.
In Human Rights and Corporations (pp. 21-66). Routledge.
Wright, R. E. (2017). The Poverty of Slavery: How Unfree Labor Pollutes the Economy.
Springer.

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