An American Corporation Outsourcing At The Pennsylvania State University

Such robust condemnations are a sign of the public relations issues raised by offshore manufacturing. In response to growing public repugnance at sweatshop labour, ethical concerns have shot up the retail agenda. All members of the British Retail Consortium, which represents 80 per cent of the country's retailers, have signed up to the independently audited Ethical Trading Initiative. The code of practice covers such issues as the free choice of employment, the right to collective bargaining, safe working conditions and payment of a living wage. "The ideas that workers in these countries are worse off because British companies are doing business with them is just wrong," said a spokesman for the BRC. "These are attractive jobs, which are well paid, and that is why people choose to do them."

On April 24, 2013, NewYorkTimes journalist Jim Yardley reported on the collapse of Rana Plaza, an eight-story factory complex in the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh, which claimed the lives of 1,100 people. A 400-page report of the incident places the blame squarely on the shoulders of the building's owner, Sohel Rana, along with the owners of the building's five garment factories, who now face possible charges of murder, along with accusations of “ignoring safety warnings and locking exit doors,” while the Bangladeshi government continues to receive harsh criticism for its lax enforcement of labor safety standards in the country's billion-dollar clothing manufacturing industry (“Sweatshop Labor”). The garment industry in Bangladesh is one of the world's leading exporters of clothing, second only to China, with more than 5,000 garment factories employing an excess of 3 million workers, producing merchandise for top brand retailers in the United States and Europe (Yardley; “Sweatshop Labor”). Workers in these factories endure long hours and unsafe working conditions for wages so low parents must send their children to work instead of school so that they have enough to eat. The tragedy of Rana Plaza brings to the forefront the true cost of things; is it worth 1,100 lives to save a few dollars on a shirt or a pair of jeans?

In this chapter, the author points out the erroneous behavior of employers to their disowned workers. Employers reduce their accountability for their workers by cateogorizing them as “temp-workers” and “independent contractors” versus actual employees. In doing so, companies contribution to economic inequality and gender inequity is discernible. Employers thrive and retain funds for their personal gain by demanding a “flexible” worker. A flexible worker is subject to lose of wages, reduced or demanding hours, and unequivocal discrimination. Legislations such as the Family Labor Standards Act or Title VII, protects “employees” only and provides leeway for companies to avoid legal responsibilites and raise their profits. Temp workers may lose their job simply because employers neglect to provide training or vocational education--making the workplace unsafe for all workers (Fredrickson 135). Laws prohibiting temp workers and independent contractors to push for a wage increase, join an union and obtain benefits relieve employers financially and legally. The only way to ensure temp workers are protected, employers and temp agencies should be considered as “joint employers”; holding them liable for workplace violations. As techonolgy advances and independent contracting remains, these types of workers will continue to be disposable. Domestic workers, independent contractors, leased and temp workers should have legal rights because of their work ethic and not their job title. Employers defintely contribute to the

Outsourcing, or the practice of Corporations expanding their influence, and labor force to foreign countries needs to stop. As it causes the decline of developed nations labor forces, does nothing to fix inequality in underdeveloped nations, has adverse affects on the economies of developed nations, and outsourcing allows corporations to cause extensive harm the the world, and it’s enviornment. If the practice of globalization were ended, it would improve the lives of many people in developed nations, the policies that affect them, and ultimately the world.

Activists say that global clothing brands like Tommy Hilfiger and the Gap and those sold by Walmart need to take responsibility for the working conditions in Bangladeshi factories that produce their clothes."

American companies trust in foreign labor to produce goods, but they are neglecting the American public with jobs, and properly made goods. With cheap labor American CEO’s can save money and make a better profit. Dr. Ron and Anil Hira explain the upcoming danger American jobs will face in the future “nearly one in nine of all U.S. jobs-are vulnerable to being outsourced” (Ron Hira Ph.D and Dr. Anil Hira 2). Business owners can make an impact on this problem by creating more work for U.S. citizens. Outsourcing will put more money in the pockets of wealthy CEO’s and in turn will create an even larger imbalance between the classes. The problem can be weakened once government regulations limit the amount of jobs that are outsourced, but also

According to Investopedia, outsourcing is “a practice used by different companies to reduce costs by transferring portions of work to outside suppliers rather than completing it internally” (Investopedia, n.d). Companies use outsourcing to reduce costs and improve productivity. In the 1970’s and 1980’s was when companies first began looking for alternatives to increase their profits and increase the production of their products (Narayanan, 2015). Products were becoming to expensive to make in the United States and other lesser developed countries were less expensive, and that is why the United States turned to China for production. There are lots of other reasons for outsourcing such as gaining access to new markets, gaining global knowledge, focusing on their core business practices, and being closer to their resources. Gaining access to new markets happens because the company is moving production abroad, and they are in a whole new area. When they begin production in this area, the people of that country are opened up to that new idea. Also gaining global knowledge is very similar to gaining access to new markets. With the company being in a new country they learn a lot about that country. They need to learn practices, customs, language, etc. If that company doesn’t learn customs, beliefs, or practices then they can offend the citizens of that country, and then their company will not be as successful. If a company decides to outsource, they also can focus on their core

Sweatshops were first well known to the public eye when several major corporations’ exploitation of workers were revealed during the late twentieth century. Sweatshops generally are factories that provide workers with socially unacceptable working conditions, especially dealing with clothing items. With the expanding apparel industries around the world, more and more corporations are using sweatshop factories to their advantage. Numerous companies claim that they are not responsible for actions of those factories from which they purchase from because it is not part of their corporation. However, action needs to be taken by the government and individual corporations to improve the working conditions in sweatshop factories. Due to the harsh working environment, insufficient pay, and other factors that cause inhumane treatment of workers in sweatshops, the US government should improve working conditions for workers, have stricter regulations on sweatshops, and strive to improve the treatment of sweatshop workers across the globe.

Nike, Victoria’s Secret, GAP, Levis, Nordstrom, Calvin Klein. Other than their status as large fashion retailers, they all have one thing in common: the International Textile Garment and Leather Workers’ Federation condemns their use of overseas sweatshops. Goods manufactured in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and many other Asian and African countries are often made in less-than-ideal conditions for low wages. While opponents of overseas labor champion stricter trading laws, this form of supply-and-demand economics remains a vital part of the global economy, as it enables prices to remain low in developed countries and employs many individuals in distant, poorer areas.

Big multi-national corporations have, throughout years, left aside ethics and morals to only focus on profit and market shares. In my essay, I am going to take Wal-Mart as an example. On November 25, 2012, fire consumed a factory outside Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka, in which 112 people (many workers from them, including Wal-Mart outsourced employees) were trapped and killed inside without any exit. (CBC 2000)

Next, we can look at the virtue of integrity. The virtue of integrity states, “even in cases in which a local culture holds values different from one’s own, a person’s own integrity would require that one’s personal values not be abandoned.” and, “to abandon one’s values in the face of disagreement or diversity is to undermine one’s integrity.” Therefore, this theory concludes that the ethical solution is to make sure that the outsourced workers of U.S. companies are provided the same working conditions that are provided in the

Cheap labor is viewed as one of the chief assets they can offer to entice investment by multinational companies, which creates jobs and provides capital for development. It is common for clothing companies to close and reopen in order to take advantage of new tax exemptions or to smother union-organizing efforts. Activists are demanding an end to the misuse of rights of workers in the factories that are producing the garments that are sold in stores. When successful, these strategies have led to improved workplace

For investors in clothing retailers and manufacturers, the expiration of the MFA means good times ahead. Thirty million textile workers, on the other hand, have just been shoved off the cliff. The institutions that regulate global trade, the powerful nations that dominate them, and the corporations whose interests they promote are committed to reshaping global trade rules along neoliberal lines, even if the changes cause upheaval for tens of millions of workers worldwide. There 's nothing inherently wrong with clothes being manufactured in China or India rather than in Mauritius or Bangladesh. But there is something wrong with a global trade regime that pushes millions of poor workers into one sector then, with little ado, kicks them out

It is imperative for today’s multi-national corporations to not only monitor supply channels for human rights violations but to act on those violations and if necessary discontinue those business relationships. In the current global age, poor working conditions in a factory can become global news almost instantaneously. For example, Asgary and Li (2014) tell the story explosion which happened in a Foxconn factory, killing four workers and injuring several more (p. 665). This tragic accident in the plant may have gone unnoticed in the western world, except for the fact that this portion of the facility created the Apple iPad. The accident now became international news, and the public outcry was significant. Asgary and Li (2014) said, “Apple, the computer giant whose success largely rests on its positive corporate reputation, was hit by a boycott call from social media,

Gap Inc. is a multinational casual apparel chain retail store with “3000 supplier in 50 different countries”. The manufacturing environment, human right treatment and labour policy vary substantially among suppliers from substandard to appalling.