Colin Kaepernick Named Face of Nike's 30th Anniversary of 'Just Do It' Campaign

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So this is somewhat of a niche of mine given my interest in athletics (track & field), running and triathlon. The raw cost is actually around $15 for a cheaper shoe, $30 for a premium but it's NOT all profit when you consider shipping, retail costs like salary and overhead, and wholesale expenses down the supply chain.

It's about the same for the major, international premium brands like Nike, Adidas, Asics, and later Puma. I am sure New Balance, Brooks, Saucony, Under Armor, Mizuno, and others are similar.
Well, you know me, I had to do a little digging on Nike's outsourcing after seeing some black folks on TV tonight calling out Nike.
In Nike’s case, they have sweatshops in many places including Vietnam and Pakistan where workers are not given fair rights or wages for the amount of work they are forced to do. Workers are routinely physically abused, mentally abused, and sexually harassed in these factories.
On top of these already terrible working conditions, workers are:

  • Not given proper training or having the necessary safety equipment.
  • Exposed to toxic glues and chemicals.
  • Paid an average of $1.60 a day when at least $3.00 a day is needed to survive.
  • Expected to work an average of 60 to 70 hours a week.
While Nike publicly says that the conditions that these workers are working in are constantly regulated, they are usually only monitored a few times a year. During those times, sweatshops are made to fit working conditions and the monitors almost never speak directly to the workers; instead they speak only to the owners of the sweatshops who are usually the ones that are perpetuating the violence towards the workers.

Nike does not offer these workers benefits but has agreed to pay for medical expenses only by reimbursing workers for medical bills that they have paid in full. In most cases, the workers aren’t able to afford adequate medical attention and therefore don’t receive any compensation from Nike.

Workers are also often scared of those that run the sweatshops in fear that they will be abused for wanting to use the bathroom or even taking a break. They are at time restricted from using the facilities since that would lessen the amount of items that were produced. Women often wear multiple sanitary napkins or refrain from using as a result of this which leads to even more unsanitary conditions and medically dangerous conditions for the workers.

Nike does not only abuse adult sweatshop workers, they are also reported to frequently hire people under the age of 18 in these sweatshops and there are no initiatives taken to monitor this. Nike signed a pledged to stop using workers in hazardous situations in 1998 after denying any abuse that these workers faced. Since then, Nike has not followed through with this agreement and routinely turns a blind eye to these sweatshops. This kind promise is something that should have been kept by a company that is sincerely trying to make sure that all of the labor that goes into their products is fair and just. Instead Nike decided to not take this issue into concern and continues to allow the unfair treatment of these workers.

They constantly boast about how these factories offer jobs to those that live abroad and how this helps them afford a better life. In reality it forces them to work like slaves without adequate compensation and forces them to work in environments that are constantly exposed to abuse and unjust treatment.

In addition to using sweatshops that perpetuate violence and offer workers inadequate conditions to work under, Nike has also bought good from manufacturers that use child labor. In Pakistan areas like Sialkot are known to use child labor to mass produce sporting goods.

Nike continues to use sweatshops in countries primarily in Asia and still does not regulate these sweatshops. Their “mission” of offering jobs to those in developing nations or nations that has higher poverty rates is just a façade for saving the company money.

Nike
Nike has REALLY cleaned up their act in the last several years, but with a standard of no slave labor, they still have quite a way to go. In 1992, activist Jeff Ballinger published an exposé in "Harpers" that revealed the story of a child in Indonesia working in disgusting conditions, and for a mere 14 cents per hour (far below the minimum wage in Indonesia at the time).

Since then, Nike has begun to report supply chain information. The most recent report claims that, in 2016, only 86% of their factories were up to the minimum standards they set. Though they give a good indication of how far the company has come, these standards are set by Nike and assessed internally, making it difficult to compare standards to a universal one.

You might want to read the rest of the companies.
https://www.theodysseyonline.com/5-companies-using-slave-labor
 

Dave70968

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Kind of like driving from Ponca to OKC in a volkswagen vs a Lincoln Town Car. Both will get you there at the same speed, but only one makes you look cool.
I'll be driving the cheap-ass Hyundai I bought from my sister, who sprung for--get this--a Ford!

30+ MPG, and y'all in the patch can just deal with it.
 

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