An Ethical Choice Sweatshops and Worker Safety T he United States, as well as many other countries, has come a long way in terms of worker safety and compensation. The number of worker- related injuries has decreased sub- stantially over generations, and many employees earn better wages. Unfor tunately, the same cannot be said for other parts of the world. To keep costs down, many compa- nies and their managers turn to devel- oping nations, where people are willing to work for low pay and no benefits. The poor, often unregulated working conditions of manual labor "sweat- shops" are common, especially in the garment industry. However, three recent accidents in Bangladesh are raising ethical questions about us- ing this type of labor. In November 2012, a fire at the Tazreen Fashion fac- tory that made low-cost garments for U.S. stores, including Walmart, killed 112 workers. In April 2013, the collapse of Rana Plaza, home to a number of garment factories, killed more than 1,100 workers. And in May 2013, a fire at the Tung Hai Sweater Company killed 8 workers. An investigation of the Rana Plaza incident revealed that the building had been constructed with- out permits, using poor materials. Al- though workers there reported seeing and hearing cracks in the structure of the building, they were ordered back to work. Because these individuals work in top-down management structures without participative management op- portunities, and do not have unions to represent them, their concerns were not heeded. Although pulling completely out of countries such as Bangladesh may only hurt individuals there who rely on this work to make a living, managers should take steps to raise safety stan- dards. Some companies, such as PVH, owner of Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein, as well as Tchibo, a German re- tailer, have signed the legally binding "IndustriALL" proposal, which requires manufacturers to conduct building and fire-safety inspections regularly and to make their findings public. Many other companies have not signed, and it re- mains to be seen if this standard will effect real change for the workers, at least in terms of their safety. Some companies are attracted to countries with sweatshops precisely because they lack regulation and oversight and offer workers willing to work for less than $50 a month. Managers thus face a decision about whether to spend extra effort and money to ensure safe and equitable working conditions for all of their workers, either at home or abroad. Sources: J. O'Donnell and C. Macleod, "Lat- est Bangladesh Fire Puts New Pressure on Retailers," USA Today (May 9, 2013), www .usatoday.com; and T. Hayden, "Tom Hayden: Sweatshops Attract Western Investors," USA Today (May 17, 2013), www.usatoday.com.