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So apparently the CEO at Nike is the sixth richest man in America, being worth around 5 BILLION dollars. That in itself is shocking. Why would anyone need that amount of money in the bank?
His staff however...
Pay rates for East Asian Workers;
Indonesian: $2.46/£1.16
Vietnamese: $1.60/82pence
Chinese: $1.75/90pence
"82pence an hour what on earth is going on!!!"
Not only do these people have to put up with low low wages that barely sustain their families (if at all) but they are forced to work overtime illegally and excessively.
This guy must have a heart like a rock!!
Should people be allowed to abuse the poor? Are they actually helping them by giving them work in the first place?
Or should they be held responsible for the fair treatment of their staff, as they would be in most western countries?
Should I boycott my favoured Nikes? -
I like my Nikes too
Most every clothing--and everything--we buy is from exploited countries sadly. Check the label and everything is from Cambodia, Malaysia, China, etc I don't know much of a way around it without getting my selfish desires I sign the petitions and raise my voice, but jog in Nikes.
TECHNICALLY we'd "have" to pay more--to have them keep a 5 billion dollar bank account.. But when some of their shoes, which cost the same to make as any of their others, are HUNDREDS more than the rest--they're already making a fortune off of nothing. When it comes to retail, the prices are laughably made up and loosely regulated. I worked in stock for many years and whenever I had to tag and ship back items returned from the previous season, they were priced immeasurably lower. 60 dollar hoodies were instead $10.99, $6.99, $3.99...These things were nearly identical to the current seasons hoodie, they just had a different SKU. 90% of my wardrobe for a while was consisted of clothings priced under 7 dollars (with a 30% employees discount to boot!).
Really, the distributors are MORE in the wrong than me....right?
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Hopefully they are in the wrong. It is an employers responsiblity to take care of its employees no matter which country/culture they come from. This is simply exploitation.
I agree about the over pricing, I have received discount for working for a clothing company, absolutely shocking difference in price. Even had a pair of very nice boots worth £120 on price tag and got them for £2.00!!! Then there are the designer outlets selling off (as you said) last seasons stock for so much less, and we are daft enough to pay for it. hhmmm if we were to boycott what would happen to the workers, would they be worse off? maybe something should be done about the bigwigs first! What I do not know. Anyone got any ideas?
How do they live with themselves knowing they are not living up to their responsibilities and hoarding money like that. gggrrrr greed greed greed -
Having worked much of the last 20 years generating costs for the jewelry industry, I can relay the following: Manufacturers costs are generally marked up 100% (50% reciprocal) for sale to the retailer (ie. $5 cost = $10 sell). The retailer then marks up 3 to 5 times (ie. $30 to $50 to the consumer). It would appear that things like clothing and accessories usually sell at what the market will bear. That is why you can get exceptional deals when items aren't selling. I think that the current rate in Chinese manufacturing is about $.80 US per hour, and a good portion of that gets kicked back to the company store.
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Those rates of pay cannot be directly compared to western world pay rates.
The first job I ever had I was paid £2 an hour, yes £2.
I could barely afford my beer for the week let alone anything else.
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Oh, so they're living as well as I am?! PHEW. Load off my back! I should move THERE with my savings! It's all the same, right?
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No weydon, presumably most of them will not be living as well as you or I.
C'est la vie.
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boycotting nikes won't make the world any better for those underpaid workers. they'll still be underpaid and laid off due to lack of sales, so the only people who will suffer are the same people youre trying to help
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Interesting point, Nef. I suppose it's important to try and get them better benefits and hours and wages, but getting them fired wouldn't make them any better. But on the other hand, letting Nike know that I'll pay lots of money for their cheaply made shoes isn't going to inspire them to put a lot of money into helping their employees. Difficult situation really.
Though I should add that you guys should also check out http://www.nosweatapparel.com/ All union made, guaranteed. Their variety isn't fantastic, but you can get some of the basics. No good running shoes or work boots as of yet They do have a union-made rip off of Converse though, for fans of it.
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now you have the right idea! find out what companies treat employees fairly, and give them your patronage. that's the best way to stand up for worker's rights.
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I think it's a combination of boycotting but still buying the goods. Yes, they need people purchising otherwise they will have even less money, but at the same time if we don't boycott...nothing will change. We have to get the message across to them and others whilst still supporting them.
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Well in our country, employees have all the say and employers are exploited as logistically they will never have the vote. A democratic country is always run by the selfish needs of the individual worker and as such the economy will go into decline.
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Yeah, I know me and my co-workers outvoted my boss into having him other people do 90% of the work for him, getting an exorbitant amount of money, spending most of the week on his fishing boat, and allowing us to do backbreaking work for mediocre pay and health benefits.
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Adding your reply:
Applehead
Mar 16 3:04 PM 2007
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