If you’re reading this, and still working on New Year’s Eve, then you are likely the kind of person that gives some genuine thought to your annual New Year’s resolutions. Perhaps your considerations already include the standards: Weight loss, improved effort at fitness and a healthy lifestyle, more family time, and additional prosperity in the new year. Not that these choices lack life perspective, they truly have that—but what would you think about something slightly more meaningful, like adding a commitment to not buy products produced with slave labor to your list?
Perhaps that’s an obvious choice you think you’re already made—after all, isn’t it illegal in the United States to buy products purchased using prison or child labor? Turns out, that’s actually hard to enforce. In fact, it’s not an easy choice at all to avoid forced labor manufacturing, it takes a commitment and some effort on the part of consumers.
Think I’m going off the deep end on the slave labor business and that it’s not at all a reality? Believe it or not, this is a huge issue that likely touches you in more ways than you realize. For instance, do you buy or wear branded apparel purchased from University bookstores or sports teams? Chances are good that a lot of us do. Here’s why that’s significant.
A widely distributed report by the Associated Press this month tracked apparel shipments from Chinese internment camps to North Carolina distributor Badger Sportswear. The camps, located in Xinjiang, hold more than 1 million detainees—mostly Muslims. These prisoners are being held captive to receive what the Chinese government calls "vocational training.” The Chinese government has denied that these are forced labor camps that are also involved in brainwashing. "Those reports are completely based on hearsay evidence or made out of thin air," Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told the AP. Not surprisingly both family members of the imprisoned individuals, as well as former prisoners, backed the story reported by the Associated Press.
Badger Sportswear supplies branded apparel to university bookstores and sports teams. Badger reacted to the release of the AP investigation by saying the company has sourced products from factory supplier Hetian Taida for years. Badger's CEO John Anton said a new factory was added about a year ago in Western China but said Badger officials visited the factory to certify social compliance. As of now, the company has voluntarily halted sourcing from that factory and will move production away while an investigation is conducted. College customers aren’t waiting around for the results, the schools pulled inventory from bookstore shelves within a week of the story surfacing.
Then there’s the CNBC story about “nightmare conditions for workers” producing Hasbro and Disney toys. That report reveals findings from campaign groups China Labor Watch, ActionAid, CiR, and Solidar Suisse, who sent undercover investigators to four factories that produced toys sold at Walmart, Costco, Target, and other international retailers. From April to September, employees were working up to 175 overtime hours per month. Chinese labor law restricts monthly overtime to 36 hours per month, but the report said factories asked local governments to override that limit. In addition to working incredibly long hours, workers were being exposed to toxic chemicals without proper safety equipment.
Hasbro confirmed that its products were produced in the facilities referred to in the report but released a statement saying, “the allegations in the report are not substantiated by Hasbro's extensive monitoring and audits conducted throughout 2018, and suppliers are in good standing with Hasbro's robust ethical sourcing requirements," a spokesperson told CNBC.
In an emailed statement to CNBC, a Target spokesperson said it took the allegations seriously, adding: "We expect all vendors supplying products to Target to uphold our standards and treat everyone with respect, dignity, and equality."
As you can see, slave labor, prison labor, child labor—all of them are alive and well around the world. The labor is apparently being used in Chinese factories and it very likely plays a role in many of the products you buy, both for your own personal use and products you might source for clients. So how do you make and keep a resolution to not support this kind of inhumane treatment of fellow human beings? How do you commit to not buy products produced with slave labor when the problem is so much larger than you are even aware of? It’s complicated, to be sure, but it’s not impossible.
There are resources like Know The Chain, an organization that believes companies and investors can be a powerful force in changing the conditions under which people work. Know The Chain uses benchmarking to identify and share best practices, and as a way to harness the competitive nature of markets. The initial idea is to create a “race to the top” that encourages companies to adopt standards and practices that protect workers’ well-being.
Why is this important to you and your clients? Worldwide, 25 million people are victims of forced labor, and according to Know The Chain’s report, many work in the $3 trillion apparel and footwear industry. Somewhere between 60 and 75 million people are employed in this global sector and, if you’re like me, you likely rationalized it was okay that these workers are paid very little. The reality is that some are just not paid at all. We, as both consumers and vendors serving our customers, have become addicted to cheap clothing. We have largely been responsible for feeding our clients’ addiction with an industry driven primarily by price. Let’s all make a resolution to kick that addiction in 2019. Millions of people are counting on us to be more aware of the human factors in our supply chains, and resolve to actually do something to improve corporate responsibility.
Jeff Jacobs has been an expert in building brands and brand stewardship for 40 years, working in commercial television, Hollywood film and home video, publishing, and promotional brand merchandise. He’s a staunch advocate of consumer product safety and has a deep passion and belief regarding the issues surrounding compliance and corporate social responsibility. He retired as executive director of Quality Certification Alliance, the only non-profit dedicated to helping suppliers provide safe and compliant promotional products. Before that, he was director of brand merchandise for Michelin. You can find him volunteering as a Guardian ad Litem, traveling the world with his lovely wife, or enjoying a cigar at his favorite local cigar shop. Connect with Jeff on Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram, or reach out to him at jacobs.jeffreyp@gmail.com.