I know I’ve been outrageously bad about blogging. I promise to do better! There’s just been so much happening that required my attention. But I saw this article and had to share it.

Apple, Child Labor & Other Forms of “Non-Compliance”

It seems Apple has revealed that child labor was used in some of its factories, and there were other forms of “non-compliance.” (Click here if you’d like to read the article.) You’ll see that, in some cases, workers were beaten for their own “non-compliance.”

Because I go out of my way to make sure our Rebagz are made under fair labor conditions – meaning good wages and a good, safe place to work – in the Philippines, this is reaaaallly a sore point for me, especially since people occasionally question our prices. I simply say, “Our bags aren’t made in China.”

Yes, it’s to Apple’s credit that they revealed this themselves rather than having someone else reveal it for them. And I do think they try to hold themselves to (somewhat) higher standards than their competitors. It’s just that I’ve become increasingly disturbed by how complacent most manufacturers are about the fair labor issue. They’re completely comfortable with the fact that people – sometimes children – work in hideous conditions and make terrible wages. They’ll literally say to me, “It’s just too expensive,” in very calm tones when I confront them about it.

Matter-of-Fact Mistreatment

It’s that calm, matter-of-fact tenor to their words that twists my stomach inside out. Of course it’s alright to treat people horribly, so long as we can sell our product. I’ve even read articles about how much better it is for the Chinese workers because they’re not stuck on the farm anymore, the women particularly.

Instead, they get to live in dormitories, and earn minimal wages that they then have to spend at the company’s store. They work weeks without a day off and, obviously, they’re not 8-hour days. They don’t get vacations. Sometimes they get beaten. Or sexually abused. But mostly they just work…and work…and work…so the factory owner and the importers can get better profit margins.

And yet, the other companies (and the Chinese) insist their workers are so much better off – to which I say, in a similarly matter-of-fact voice, that the house slaves had it better than the field slaves. But they were still slaves.

That’s usually about the time when the conversation ends.

Start Building Your Mountain

Please please please be aware of what you’re buying. Remember your dollars impact the world at large. If you purchase something made under fair labor conditions that may cost a little more than that bag made in China, you do two things. First, in all likelihood, you’ll get much better quality. Second, you literally change the world. Just a little – but little bits add up to mountains.

XOXO Marty