If cities were people, Madison would be the romantically idealistic kid who gives the only quarter in his pocket to the Salvation Army on his way out of the department store.
On Oct. 11, a City of Madison common council meeting saw the unanimous passing of an ordinance setting humane standards for the production of city-purchased garments. Madison might be viewed as naive in its hopefulness for change, but the city's efforts must be commended. Although Madison alone cannot reverse a corporate culture of abusing third-world economic conditions, perhaps its example can inspire broader governmental action on the issue.
Given the recent acceleration of capitalism's global expansion, the exploitation of the world's most impoverished people to produce consumer goods for the world's wealthiest people has become one of today's great moral dilemmas. At the forefront of this quandary is the issue of the sweatshop. Often located in the poorest regions of Latin America and Southeast Asia, these centers of consolidated human misery have long work shifts, appalling working conditions, and wages that make a Wal-Mart employee's fringe benefits look comparable to those of Dennis Kozlowski.
Many popular clothing lines and chain stores are major beneficiaries of the sweatshop arrangement. Notable businesses among those accused of utilizing sweatshop labor include the Walt Disney Company, The Gap and — you guessed it — Nike. While most companies avoid the public relations faux pas of operating sweatshops themselves, it is common business practice to use a middleman through which sweatshop labor is subcontracted.
Although staunch capitalists will defend the deplorable sweatshop system as an opportunity for the impoverished, it is imaginable that the average consumer has experienced at least some guilt — however slight — concerning their participation in a hierarchy of oppression. Even adamant opponents of sweatshops can be made to feel guilty about their purchases, as the lack of information on the origin of many products can create unintended and unrecognized hypocrisy at the check-out line.
Expecting the United States government to thoroughly monitor and regulate the labor practices of all American companies abroad is unreasonable. Another solution often floated by the anti-sweatshop crowd — the banning of goods imported from countries with histories of sub-standard labor conditions — also proves to be counterproductive. Although people in those countries would no longer be wage-slaves, many would likely be forced into means of sustenance less desirable than working in a sweatshop, as capitalism has ended their traditional way of life en route to making itself their only opportunity.
How, then, can the many resources of the United States be employed to improve the working conditions of those whose living standards have been obliterated in the west's crusade to slightly better its own?
Perhaps one of the simplest and least regulatory methods of curbing sweatshop labor practices could be one of the most effective. The United States government can very easily establish a set of labor standards regarding the manufacture of goods abroad to be exported to the U.S., with no mandatory compliance required. Products sold in the U.S., however, can then be labeled as to whether they were produced under said set of labor standards. Through this process, the government can avoid direct interference with the free market and leave the issue of sweatshop labor up to the consciences of consumers.
U.S. consumers unintentionally support the oppression of impoverished people around the globe nearly every time they buy clothes. However, if forced to choose between a shirt labeled as having been produced under sub-standard labor conditions and a more humane alternative for $5 more, it's hard to imagine many shoppers would opt for the former.
By simply informing consumers about their choices, the U.S. government can almost effortlessly improve the lives of millions.
Madison's new ordinance is a welcome progression toward eliminating the sweatshop byproduct of capitalism, but its most valuable role can be that of inspiring much broader action.
Rob Rossmeissl ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in political science.
