Series of people find hidden pleas for help from sweatshop workers in clothing bought from UK store - Polidicks

[quote]A SWANSEA shopper is vowing not to wear a bargain dress she claims to have bought in the city because it may be the result of exploitive labour. Rebecca Gallagher was shocked to read a label in a bargain £10 summer dress she claims she bought from a High Street fashion chain because it read: "Forced to work exhausting hours". The 25-year-old from Gowerton spotted the handmade label sewn into the multi-coloured top she says was from discount store Primark. And she has vowed never to wear it again because of the fear it was made by a tired worker toiling in a foreign sweatshop. [/quote] [img]http://www.southwales-eveningpost.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276352/Article/images/21241950/6214372-large.jpg[/img] [url=http://www.southwales-eveningpost.co.uk/Bargain-pound-10-dress-exhausted-labour-tag/story-21241950-detail/story.html]South Wales Evening Post[/url] [quote]A top High Street fashion chain is investigating how two shoppers claim to have found labels sewn into summer dresses saying "sweatshops conditions" and "exhausting hours". The two women have said they were shocked to see the hand-made labels sewn into bargain tops, which they claim were bought from the same Primark store in Swansea city centre. Rebecca Gallagher, 25, spotted a label reading: "Forced to work exhausting hours" next to the washing instruction of her bargain top. And a second shopper Rebecca Jones, 21, has revealed how she found another label reading: "Degrading sweatshop conditions". The two women - who do not know each other - say they bought their £10 summer dresses from the same Primark store in Whitewalls, Swansea. It comes after the discount fashion retailers have been criticised over working conditions of workers abroad - but Primark insists it has a strict code of ethics.[/quote] [img]http://www.southwales-eveningpost.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276352/Article/images/21288579/6245302-large.jpg[/img] [url=http://www.southwales-eveningpost.co.uk/Primark-investigating-shoppers-express-concerns/story-21288579-detail/story.html]SWEP[/url] [quote]A shopper in Northern Ireland has said that she found a handwritten note in Chinese in a pair of trousers bought in Primark in Belfast. According to Amnesty International, Karen Wisínska from Co Fermanagh came forward with the note - wrapped around a prison identity card. The charity says the note is an “appeal to the international community to condemn the Chinese government for a violation of the prisoner’s human rights”. Mrs Wisínska has said that she bought the garment in the Primark store in Belfast city centre in June 2011, but only found the card and note this week when she took the unworn item out of a cupboard. Speaking to the Mirror, a spokesperson for Primark said that the trousers in question were last ordered by Primark in early 2009, and last sold in Northern Ireland in October that year. The bargain brand chain has said it will now be conducting a full investigation into this incident.[/quote] [url=http://www.southwales-eveningpost.co.uk/shopper-comes-forward-alleged-8216-help-8217/story-21289284-detail/story.html]SWEP[/url]

[quote]And she has vowed never to wear it again because of the fear it was made by a tired worker toiling in a foreign sweatshop.[/quote] Well you already bought it so I don't think they're gonna care about you not wearing it.

the problem is that its so fucking cheap, there's been labour scandals before with Primark and everybody is up in arms about it... but fast forward a month when you need a new pair of jeans, all of a sudden spending £40 is far too much when Primark has a pair for £8.

While in principle boycotting these sorts of things is well-intentioned and earnest, it doesn't really work in the end - since many things we buy or use are the result of sweatshop/slave labour. Individual boycotting isn't going to stop it in any case.

[QUOTE=JgcxCub;45217039]While in principle boycotting these sorts of things is well-intentioned and earnest, it doesn't really work in the end - since many things we buy or use are the result of sweatshop/slave labour. Individual boycotting isn't going to stop it in any case.[/QUOTE] Not to mention that even successfully boycotting the clothes would simply mean they will stop selling, they would stop ordering them, and the sweatshop would close down, leaving the people with no work whatsoever and starving.

Welcome to the capitalistic world of exploitation.

I have a feeling these aren't real, like someone placed them there.

[QUOTE=Awesomecaek;45217121]Not to mention that even successfully boycotting the clothes would simply mean they will stop selling, they would stop ordering them, and the sweatshop would close down, leaving the people with no work whatsoever and starving.[/QUOTE] This is exactly the case. The only real way to solve the problem is to [I]demand higher prices,[/I] which is the only reasonable way to give workers better conditions, but that's not gonna happen anytime soon. Sweatshops suck, but relying on odd jobs/begging/not having a job sucks way more.

[QUOTE=latin_geek;45217262]This is exactly the case. The only real way to solve the problem is to [I]demand higher prices,[/I] which is the only reasonable way to give workers better conditions, but that's not gonna happen anytime soon. Sweatshops suck, but relying on odd jobs/begging/not having a job sucks way more.[/QUOTE] No, on their own demanding higher prices will simply mean the people in charge take a greater share. If you do that then the sweatshop workers will see nothing of it, since there's no need for them to be paid more. You have to demand that they're paid more. These companies generally have pretty high markups anyway, it's not as if raising salaries would _massively_ affect the price.

these definitely seem like they've been put on post manufacture but primark is still a shitehole regardless

[QUOTE='[Seed Eater];45216930'][img]http://www.southwales-eveningpost.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276352/Article/images/21288579/6245302-large.jpg[/img][/QUOTE] These quotation marks are suspicious to me.

If she doesn't wear it all that hard work will of been for nothing

What if they're actually cries for help from the poor souls that have to work retail in Primark?

Really the way to solve the problem is to actually get the workers in those countries proper workers rights. Bump up the price without that and the sellers benefit more than anyone else, if you just dismantle the sweatshops then they'll be moved to another country with shitty workers rights. Honestly I think it would take a grand, international declaration of basic workers rights that the over whelming majority of countries sign and boycott any nation that doesn't do it.

[QUOTE=JgcxCub;45217039]While in principle boycotting these sorts of things is well-intentioned and earnest, it doesn't really work in the end - since many things we buy or use are the result of sweatshop/slave labour. Individual boycotting isn't going to stop it in any case.[/QUOTE] It's 'cause the common folk only care about saving money. Whilst some folks hold true to their standards, our virtuous stand against this heresy is undermined by the folks who don't give a damn and just want cheap chinos. For every pair we refuse to buy, there are a dozen pairs bought to make up for it. It makes us feel so impotent, looking across that sea of faces always searching for more and more. If only our actions could have more impact without the constant flow of ignorant uncaring consumers washing away what little damage we can inflict. It's the same for the gaming industry, and the same for pretty much every industry open to mass consumption. Ugh, it's so damn depressing.

I always thought people were aware of the conditions Primark's clothes were manufactured in. There's no way they'd be able to sell them so cheap if they weren't.

[QUOTE=Paramud;45218112]These quotation marks are suspicious to me.[/QUOTE] Also, very neat hand writing and impeccable English. If these are from a foreign sweat shop, those are some very well educated workers.

[QUOTE=hypno;45218542]Also, very neat hand writing and impeccable English. If these are from a foreign sweat shop, those are some very well educated workers.[/QUOTE] Yeah, it's quite obviously some covert activists at work, probably taking them to try on and then sewing the labels on in the changing rooms, before returning them to staff who don't notice the difference.

I wonder if we will ever progress to such a point that workers all have adequate rights and are treated fairly worldwide. Would trade barriers against countries that fail to implement such rights work? Part of me doubts it. It seems past that point now. And part of me knows that it wouldn't happen anyway because the west is so dependent on goods produced by cheap labour elsewhere.

[QUOTE=Craigewan;45218568]Yeah, it's quite obviously some covert activists at work, probably taking them to try on and then sewing the labels on in the changing rooms, before returning them to staff who don't notice the difference.[/QUOTE] The article says the notes came in Chinese. I think they just wrote translations for the photos.

[QUOTE=Grenadiac;45218668]The article says the notes came in Chinese. I think they just wrote translations for the photos.[/QUOTE] That's a different incident actually. I'm referring to the labels sewn into the tops from Primark, rather than the note found in the pocket of a pair of jeans. (There are 3 stories in the OP)

I have a strong feeling this is a load of bullshit a couple people put there for attention, most likely the people in the pictures. One reason being the good hand writing and spelling / grammar that you would definitely not expect from a Chinese sweatshop worker. I'd be more inclined to believe these if there was like ONE Chinese letter, or, rather they were completely written in Chinese. But nope perfect english. If I'm wrong then I'm an asshole but I strongly smell bullshit

[QUOTE=Lurklet;45218704]I have a strong feeling this is a load of bullshit a couple people put there for attention, most likely the people in the pictures. One reason being the good hand writing and spelling / grammar that you would definitely not expect from a Chinese sweatshop worker. I'd be more inclined to believe these if there was like ONE Chinese letter, or, rather they were completely written in Chinese. But nope perfect english. If I'm wrong then I'm an asshole but I strongly smell bullshit[/QUOTE] Well, the third incident supposedly had a note actually written in chinese in the pocket of the jeans. But the labels in perfect english are likely the work of activists.

[QUOTE=bravehat;45218310]Really the way to solve the problem is to actually get the workers in those countries proper workers rights. Bump up the price without that and the sellers benefit more than anyone else, if you just dismantle the sweatshops then they'll be moved to another country with shitty workers rights. Honestly I think it would take a grand, international declaration of basic workers rights that the over whelming majority of countries sign and boycott any nation that doesn't do it.[/QUOTE] china's already ratified the international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights, so the treaties "work" to a certain extent but the real problem is enforcement of the treaties, because of the fact that they're multilateral with a really unclear message as to a) who is set to enforce them and b) what the actual punishments are, most human rights treaties actually fall in importance and effectiveness to unilateral or bilateral action that results in negotiations for increased standards of various forms the treaties are great for people that are in states with a robust legal system, but the people that the treaties can help best tend to be in states without a robust legal system

Why are the tags attached so badly compared to the rest of the clothes? Why is the word 'Degrading' in quotes? Why is it written in English?

How the hell would poor Chinese sweatshop workers with very little education know English without spelling errors let alone quotation marks?

Looks pretty fake to me, I thought sweatshop workers were often poorly educated and I wouldn't expect them to be able to write in english that well. Seems just like a distasteful joke made by someone. Should be noted that even if they are fake or not, it should still be considered that the situations they describe are very real.

[QUOTE=Impact1986;45217226]Welcome to the capitalistic world of exploitation.[/QUOTE] if not for the fact sobotnik was banned, he would be all over this thread telling how wrong you are :v: [QUOTE=Fatfatfatty;45223534]Looks pretty fake to me, I thought sweatshop workers were often poorly educated and I wouldn't expect them to be able to write in english that well. Seems just like a distasteful joke made by someone. Should be noted that even if they are fake or not, it should still be considered that the situations they describe are very real.[/QUOTE] its probably fake, i seriously doubt something like this would not be seen at all until sold.

It's a slow process but the end result is good. Look at China, they are the way they are now cause of the US demand for manufacturing of anything and everything. Eventually over a decade or two standard of living and work conditions rose. Still are rising too, aren't the greatest but they aren't decreasing by any means. You can't just skip ahead in the line of progression from near slave workers to $20/h that's not how shit works. It's a long term improvement rather than a short term feel good one people like to yell for. Once the cost/benefit of China reaches its crescendo portions of the manufacturing base will migrate to another country and repeat the process. And on the actual topic those tags look fabricated as hell.

Now people buy shitloads of primark to see if they get a label like that exploiting our white weakness ingenious