Workers Suffer in Sweat Shops to Make Our Toys

[G_j]

Workers Suffer in Sweat Shops to Make Our Toys
http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/112704V.shtml

Sweat, Fear and Resignation Amid All the Toys

By Abigail Goldman
The Los Angeles Times

Friday 26 November 2004

Despite Mattel's efforts to police factories, thousands of workers are suffering.


Just off a wide dirt road that leads to a densely packed jumble of factories, workers behind one guarded metal gate toil seven days a week, sometimes as many as 24 hours straight, making toys for about 20 cents an hour.

It is a pace that makes them almost numb to the poor ventilation, the lack of bathroom breaks and a fear that they will be beaten if they complain.

Sweatshops aren't unusual, of course, in a country that possesses a large and cheap workforce and a permissive government hungry to attract big business. What makes this situation notable is that these workers make products for a company widely considered one of the most socially responsible American firms: Mattel Inc.

<snip>
When it comes to limiting work hours, ensuring fair pay and improving health and safety standards, "Mattel is one of the best," said Chan Ka Wai, associate director of the Hong Kong Christian Industrial Committee, which has done extensive investigations into working conditions in the Chinese toy industry.

Yet for all of that, tens of thousands of workers who make Mattel products still suffer.

..more..

[China_cat]

1. Yes

The art of Carol Simpson

http://www.cartoonwork.com/

[Sporadicus]

2. Bad Karma

for a society that depends on cheap goods produced under conditions that constitute - realistically - slavery. We lose our humanity by acting as enablers for this heinous exploitation.

[G_j]

3. so true

..and the thought of a child playing with a toy that was made by another child who has been robbed of their childhood and forced to work under inhumane conditions is chilling.
I bet many children would cry if you told them the origin of their toys.

BTW. I love Progressive Secretary! They Rock!
may I suggest including a clickable link?

www.progressivesecretary.org

[Sporadicus]

4. I Considered That

but decided against cluttering my post-page too much or cause excessive, nonproductive traffic at their website. I hope that the graphic entices interested people to actually enter the URL and see what Progressive Secretary is all about.

[G_j]

6. cool

they are my favorite on-line activist site, a labor of love for sure

[2Design]

5. this is the progress the rw wants to do away with - we had fixed

this problem of sweat shops here - at the beginning of the 20th century - this is where and why unions started - this is how the 40 hour work week started - this is how benefits and vacation started - at that time our congress worked for the people not their own pay and retirement

they made laws to protect us - now they are dismantling those laws and they are encouraging global shipping of our jobs to sweatshops - they are doing all they can to bust the unions

people have become complacent - the benefits they earned here were because of the DEMOCRATIC society who believed in helping people - now they are all voting for dismantling this society - under the guise of rw xtians -

their children will pay the consequences

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

7. Buy toys made by American artisans

there are still some out there. My neighbor, Dave Spencer, is one of them. He's a political/environmental activist as well!

www.spencertoys.com

[MatrixEscape]

8. Boycott Happy Meals?

What about those ultra-cheap toys that come with them? McLabor?