Disney Sweatshops

[haveyoumetmark]

Well, the Walt Disney Company has been my favorite company for a very long time now, and no surprise that it's one of my main interests, but I had no clue Disney has sweatshops all over the world! It's quite unnerving to me, I understand Disney's a corporate giant, etc. but sweatshops... news to me.

I'm always discussing Disney with someone, they ask why I like Disney so much if they're such a greedy company, etc... I try to fend for myself as much as I can, and then I blissfully ignore it because I really do love Disney, and why dwell on the bad things.

Sure they've had their hostile corporate takeovers, and just like any other global corporation, their ups and downs. I knew that everything wasn't so magical behind the scenes and I didn't expect it to be. However, sweatshops are totally new to me and it's shocking typing in "disney sweatshops" on google and seeing the results.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=disney+sweatshops

Maybe the best thing to do would be to ignore it, as iPods, Nikes, and almost everything else goes through the same agenda. It is a tad bothersome to me though, maybe just because it's Disney. I don't know... So, can anyone offer any insight or opinions? Some comforting news would be nice. Anything is really welcome... :wave:

How about a disclaimer
I'm not a super activist or anything, nor am I ignorant of my surroundings. I was just surprised by this information.

 

[JikoMarie]

Wow. This is really unnerving. It makes me really rethink my support of the Disney company. Is there something that we can do?

 

[dopey]

One man's sweatshop is another man's (or child's) livlihood. We can't judge the way these overseas companies are run by American standards. Different cultures have different values.

Should American businesses, and ultimately, American consumers, not take advantage of these differences? You can make a good argument either way. It's a personal decision. All business, to varying degrees, is about the bottom line. I doubt you will find very many businesses that are pure in heart.

 

[JikoMarie]

Actually, Dopey, I am a very socially conscious consumer and there are plenty of companies that uphold good standards. In my opinion, there is no need for sweatshops. There are companies, like the GAP, that outsource to other countries but still monitor closely and uphold good standards. I personally think it's horrible for a company to take advantage of another country's disrespect for human rights and lives. Just politely disagreeing I assure you.

 

[Monty]

I've gone through the first half-dozen google hits and with the exception of one incident in 2004, all of the material that even shows a year [that I could find] is 2001 or earlier. Most make statements without backing or are very global "Corporations are bad, Disney is a corporation" statements. Many wage comparisons state that some workers in plants are paid the minimum wage

Any corporation is going to fail a litmus test that determines they are evil for obeying the laws of the countries they operate in.

Minimum wages are set by governments [sometimes corrupt governments] to identify what is a necessary wage to survive. If the governments are setting minimum wages artificially low, protest to the government that does so.

Disney may not be squeaky clean, but they aren't the Evil Empire either.

 

[JikoMarie]

I'm certainly not trying to make Disney out to be an evil empire. In fact, I truly hope that the allegations are inflated. However, it is perhaps worth researching further for those of us interested in doing so and I thank the OP for bringing it to our attention.

 

[dopey]

No offense taken. I'm sure there's a lot I can learn. But there remains the question of the standards by which we're judging American corporations. The priorities of people in some of the poorest countries are not the same as ours. In fact, the natives sometimes can turn hostile when we try to impose our standards on them. Sometimes it can seem absurd to us, like when people choose a new soccer field over clean water.

But belief systems run deep. Imagine if, say, the French government tried to force American companies to give employees eight weeks vacation. Some people would love it, no doubt. But many others -- especially business -- would resent the French for trying to impose their will on us and on our economy.

 

[unkadug]

No offense taken. I'm sure there's a lot I can learn. But there remains the question of the standards by which we're judging American corporations. The priorities of people in some of the poorest countries are not the same as ours. In fact, the natives sometimes can turn hostile when we try to impose our standards on them. Sometimes it can seem absurd to us, like when people choose a new soccer field over clean water.

But belief systems run deep. Imagine if, say, the French government tried to force American companies to give employees eight weeks vacation. Some people would love it, no doubt. But many others -- especially business -- would resent the French for trying to impose their will on us and on our economy.

Les vies de Revolucion :sohappy:

 

[JikoMarie]

No offense taken. I'm sure there's a lot I can learn. But there remains the question of the standards by which we're judging American corporations. The priorities of people in some of the poorest countries are not the same as ours. In fact, the natives sometimes can turn hostile when we try to impose our standards on them. Sometimes it can seem absurd to us, like when people choose a new soccer field over clean water.

But belief systems run deep. Imagine if, say, the French government tried to force American companies to give employees eight weeks vacation. Some people would love it, no doubt. But many others -- especially business -- would resent the French for trying to impose their will on us and on our economy.

Personally I think we should be using the standards of universal human rights. Furthermore, I think it's perfectly acceptable to hold North American companies to North American standards no matter where they choose to set up shop. Also, I think we could take a few pages out of the Western European labour books. There's probably a reason why their violent crime, suicide and general stress rates are far lower than ours.

 

[GenerationX]

Actually, according to this article, the U.S. violent crime rate has been on a consistent downward trend for 10-15 years. In the same time period, Western Europe has just about caught up. And in certain subcategories, the U.S. has been surpassed.

According to this article, the U.S. suicide rate is in the middle of the pack. Many other industrialized nations have higher rates than the U.S.

As dopey said, many countries do not appreciate attempts by outsiders to influence their culture and way of life. Even when the influencer means well.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Perhaps they could fund some air conditioning, or buy some roll on or talc.