The Race to the Bottom: Suppliers, Sub-Contractors and India’s Child Labor Crisis
June 3, 2008
// By Dan McDougall
In the UK we have coined the phrase “the race to the bottom” to sum up the practice of western retailers and their foreign contractors cutting corners—seemingly at all costs—to keep margins down and profits up.
In the past month I have exposed three of the world’s major retailers: Otto-Heine, the largest online retailer in Europe, Esprit, the world’s fifth largest clothing store; and Gap Inc., one of the world’s most widely recognized fashion brands, for employing children. All three companies employed Indian contractors who displayed scant regard for the consequences of subcontracting. Next month, two more international firms, who I am presently unable to name, will join this growing hall of shame. // Read more.
Print This Post