Sweat Shops Padlet by Sophia Yarosh https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs Made with wonder en-us 2019-02-11 19:22:57 UTC 2025-10-09 14:54:13 UTC hello@padlet.com What is the situation? 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330059743 In 2013 a factory in Bangladesh collapsed, which injured approximately 2,500 people and killed around 1,100 people. It was an eight story commercial building named Rana Plaza that held several shops, a bank and a number of separate garment factories that employed around 5,000 people.]]> 2019-02-11 19:33:02 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330059743 When did this start/happen? 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330060253 The collapse of Rana Plaza occurred the morning of April 24, 2013. The top four floors were built without a permit and the building as a whole was designed for shops and offices, but not factories. The structure was not strong enough to hold the weight or vibration of heavy machinery. Also the day before the collapse a TV channel recorded footage that showed cracks in the building which caused the building to be evacuated for the day, but Sohel Rana (the owner of the plaza) said that the building was safe and workers should return tomorrow. Furthermore some managers threatened to withhold a month's pay from workers who refused to come to work.]]> 2019-02-11 19:33:48 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330060253 Why did this happen? 335501482 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330060602 This happened due to the carelessness and selfishness of the the people in charge of the complex. This starts off with complex owner Sohel Rana. Rana did not do the things required to ensure the buildings safety. This includes, funding repairs, having regular safety inspections done and making sure the building is structurally sound in the first place. Rana failed to do these things and as a result the building collapsed. The managers  also need to be held accountable. The workers reported seeing cracks in the walls the day before the building collapsed. The managers  should have taken these reports more seriously and not have people come in until the problem is fixed. However they got people to come to work the next day anyways. This tragedy falls on them as well, because they were the reason the workers were there that day even though they knew better. Some structural reasons were Building built on a filled-in pond which compromised structural integrity, the conversion from commercial use to industrial use, addition of three floors above the original permit, and the use of substandard construction material. Overall, this happened because the owner was extremely irresponsible with maintaining the building and the people in charge of the workers made people come into work despite the dangerous conditions. ]]> 2019-02-11 19:34:18 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330060602 Who is involved? 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330060689 3600 factory workers- In underdeveloped countries such as Bangladesh, there is not a lot of work to go around. This leaves millions of people having to work in factories for very little pay. On April 25, 2013 a garment factory collapsed in Bangladesh due to the poor conditions of the building. This lead to 1100 workers dying and 2500 injured.

The owners of the factory- The owners of the factory held the responsibility of maintaining the buildings safety. They clearly failed. The owners felt that it was a waste of money to maintain the buildings safety, so they just didn’t do it. The building turned out to be in such poor condition, that it collapsed and killed over 1000 people. The owner of the building named Sohel Rana is currently on trial for murder.

The companies employing these factories- Companies such as Nike, H&M, Walmart, and more produced apparel in Rana Plaza factories. Instead of promoting safe work environments they chose to cut corners. This lead to the collapse instead of the prevention. 
]]> 2019-02-11 19:34:26 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330060689 How can this issue impact Canada/Canadian Companies? 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330061241  The issue ends up impacting Canadian companies in a number of ways. Firstly it effects them if they are involved with creating and supporting sweatshops in third world countries. This will greatly impact the image of the company perceived by the public and sales along with stock will suffer. In this specific case one could even say that these companies involved had a hand in the injuries and deaths of all those people. Another way that companies will be affected by sweatshops is if even if they themselves are no using them, taxes and bans on countries that contain them may be put into place. This of course is harmful for many companies as they still do trade and manufacture a lot of their products in these countries, so by having large tariffs their products will become more expensive in turn. ]]> 2019-02-11 19:35:24 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330061241 What has come from this event? 335501482 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330062657 After the Rana Plaza catastrophe, murder charges were placed on the 38 people connected and more than 200 apparel companies from 20 countries signed the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh to prevent similar tragedies from occurring. This accord has worked to make over 2.5 million labourers safe. Additionally, 97,000 of 132,000 hazards at factories in Bangladesh have been eliminated. The number of factories located in multipurpose buildings have decreased by 49% from 2014 to 2018. The number of unions have increased, giving workers a platform on which to defend themselves and their working conditions. Despite all this progress, working conditions in Bangladesh are far from perfect.]]> 2019-02-11 19:37:51 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330062657 Why do we need to know about this? 335501482 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330066778 It is key that we learn, understand, and know about the issue so that it can be stopped and minimized in the future. The more people are informed on the issue the more they can stand up to the companies who are abusing their power and utilising these sweatshops for their own personal gain. If people do nothing about it then they indirectly encourage the behaviour of these sweatshops and the terrible conditions within. Recently the minimum wage in Bangladesh had been raised from $38 - $68 monthly, this seems like a significant raise but with the recommended living wage being at minimum $177 these people aren’t coming close to living proper lives. When nothing is said or done this sort of behaviour will continue and the big names like Ivanka Trump’s apparel line will continue to look the other way and avoid the accords. If people begin to learn and stand up to the issue then these big companies can be backed into a corner and in turn provide those living conditions that third world peoples so badly need.]]> 2019-02-11 19:44:50 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330066778 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330516336 2019-02-12 19:13:27 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330516336 Rana Plaza 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330517576 This video was published on Apr 26, 2013 showing the cracks in the building that were observed the day before the collapse. Since this video was published so close to the collapse date all the injuries/deaths were not accounted for.]]> 2019-02-12 19:15:43 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330517576 What are sweatshops? 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330524173 Sweatshop: "a shop or factory in which employees work for long hours at low wages and under unhealthy conditions"
- Defined by Merriam Webster]]> 2019-02-12 19:27:06 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330524173 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330529752 2019-02-12 19:37:04 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330529752 Types of sweatshop Jobs 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330639915 A 15 year old boy named Zakir Hussain,  works in a tannery for only $50 a month. His job requires the use of a toxic stew of chemicals that is poisoning his lungs. Or a   9-year-old girl who works as a thread trimmer with 12-hour days for $32 a month to help her family make ends meet ]]> 2019-02-13 01:59:59 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330639915 What is the future for sweatshops? 335501482 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330640374 Although great strides have been made towards the termination of sweatshops, there are still many challengers workers must face. There is still a great demand for cheap labour, as companies want to keep their prices lower and more desirable. This creates a cycle in which workers are paid less for longer hours in harsh conditions because it helps reduce overall costs. Thankfully, recently steps have been taken to raise awareness of this prominent issue, inspiring many to create change. By making small adjustments to your everyday routine, you too can help reduce this problem. Hopefully, the impact of these lifestyle changes will be seen within our lifetimes.]]> 2019-02-13 02:02:36 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330640374 What can be done about this issue? 335501482 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330645653 - Buy union-made, local, or secondhand products.
- Demand sweatshop free products where you shop (through customer comment cards or petitions).
- Buy Fair Trade products.
- Raise awareness by educating others.]]> 2019-02-13 02:31:31 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330645653 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330657356 2019-02-13 03:34:15 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330657356 072617079 https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330658714 2019-02-13 03:42:15 UTC https://padlet.com/335501482/n9plhogwubqs/wish/330658714