Rant on so called sweat shops

[Tsaico]

I know this is fuel for the flame war, but I grow tired of reading about all these people complaining about how hard things are here, and how overseas sweatshops are killing our own economy.

Truth is, they aren't sweatshops. Take china for example, a common place for these "sweatshops". In the year 1994, the average annual income of an individual was 7555.89 renminbi, for that year' the exchange rate would have meant that person earned $886.84 in US dollars for the YEAR. Divide that out by 52 weeks and then by 40 hours, he is roughly earning 42 cents an hour. He is the average citizen, by his peers, he has a average job with an average income. On top of that, this is in Shenghai, so his average income is much higher than those in rural area. In some case more then 3x. So when I hear about people complaining about how Nike is or Sony, or whoever, is taking advantage of someone in another country and paying them only 50 cents a day, they are just paying them the average wage, and depending on where this worker is from possibly even more then average. It isn't the companies fault the living conditions are so poor in "X" country.

I think what people forget is really how great we have it here. What we should be talking about isn't about how poor these workers are because they aren't. We should be worried about sending our money overseas, not because we are taking advantage of a poverished people, but because they aren't sending it back. Of course, I type this on a computer whose components are entirely made in China...

Based on infomration from these two websites...
Currency converter for today and yesterday

Ironically, a paper about the poverty in China and it's problem of the widening wage gap.

 

[Accipiter22]

that's actually a very good point...if everyone around you earns the same thing, you're not dirt poor. It would be like a country with a median income of $100,000 talking about how poor we are with our median income of $35,000 and saying it's a travesty.

 

[Inappropriate4AT]

No way, somebody with a head on their shoulders? OMG Wal-Mart IS THE DEVIL!!!oneone

 

[franksta]

Also, while he might be earning $800 per year things aren't quite as expensive there.

 

[waggy]

ugh now people are going ot come on and say its Wal-marts fault the wage is that low or its wal-marts responsility to make sure they have a living wage etc.

 

[Scarpozzi]

This makes a good point, but the figures may not be entirely accurate. I don't really know if they're on a 40 hour work week over there. I don't know much about their working culture, but I was shocked when I learned that France was on a 35 hour work week.... If they work less or more, things could be better or worse.... Either way, the cost of living over there is a lot lower because many of their food sources are grown in the country and extremely cheap.

 

[franksta]

Although, I think a sweatshop is more of a place that has miserable working conditions. Sorry, I forgot to mention that in my previous post.

 

[Lonyo]

Originally posted by: Scarpozzi
This makes a good point, but the figures may not be entirely accurate. I don't really know if they're on a 40 hour work week over there. I don't know much about their working culture, but I was shocked when I learned that France was on a 35 hour work week.... If they work less or more, things could be better or worse.... Either way, the cost of living over there is a lot lower because many of their food sources are grown in the country and extremely cheap.

Agricultural workers are almost certain to be working longer hours than those in factories,even if they do make factory workers do 60 hours a week or something, so in their country, they're still getting a relatively nice deal.

 

[xospec1alk]

agreed