In India, the cotton gins are continuously working, with girls—some as young as 10 years old—employed to spin the raw cotton into commercial cotton for a global textile industry that generates trillions of dollars annually. The working conditions are dangerous, and the workers are not paid the minimum wage. A constant white cloud of cotton dust fills the factories, which can eventually cause lung disease for the children as they age. In addition, it is not uncommon for the exhausted children to fall asleep on the job and die from suffocation in the piles of raw cotton. The little hands of the girls pry open the cotton buds to get to the material to feed into the machines. In many cases, the children are sent by their parents to work the mills. The children do not see any of the money for their work because it all goes to the parents. The workers are paid just over $2 a day instead of the $7 for each 12-hour shift that is required by the labor laws in India. Indian law also does not allow children younger than 16 years old to work in the factories. Almost 500,000 children actually work in the cotton plants in India. Therefore, consumers in developed countries who purchase these goods made from cotton do not realize the human cost in the development of cotton fibers.

Questions

1. Why doesn’t the Indian government enforce its own labor laws?

2. Why would parents send their children to work in such horrible work conditions?

3. Is it better for the girls to be working in the factory or providing no income at home? Explain your position.