Double Standard That the United Term Paper

Total Length: 2049 words ( 7 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: -10

Page 1 of 7

If American companies are setting examples the local companies will soon have to follow suit or face angry employees.

The second way it will benefit the world is by maintaining a fair competition in the market for other companies. Going overseas for the sole purpose of cost and then shipping the product back to the states at reduced prices also hurts the U.S. economy. American workers spend their money within the boundaries of the U.S. And it is important for companies to remember the very people who work for them also buy from them.

Under the gun most recently when it comes to fair labor standards overseas is Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart provides jobs for hundreds of thousands of people worldwide and recently came under fire when it was discovered that it was not practicing even minimally fair labor standards with regards to its overseas workers.

Wal-Mart represents everything that's wrong with the WTO. Free trade doesn't come by making workers unfree. That's what Wal-Mart is doing/amassing great wealth by pitting workers against workers, driving down wages and lowering working conditions worldwide," said Robert Morand, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) International Vice President (Wal-Mart, 1999). "

Wal-Mart's garments are stitched in misery. In the Beximco garment factory, a Wal-Mart contractor in Bangladesh, young women making shirts for Wal-Mart are forced to work 87 hours a week and paid 9 to 20 cents and hour for 80 hours. In many overseas garment shops where clothes for Wal-Mart are sewn, new employees are forced to take a mandatory pregnancy test. Workers are searched on the way in and out of factories and public access to plants is prohibited by heavily armed guards.
"

The below chart provides an idea of the growth in overseas jobs being provided by United States companies on an annual basis.

Job category

Management

Business

Computer

Architecture

Life sciences

Legal

Art, design

Sales

Office

Source: U.S. Department of Labor and Forrester Research, Inc. All numbers have been rounded. http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/extra/P62115.asp

CONCLUSION

It is clear to see that the problem is escalating. U.S. companies are moving overseas in an effort to ignore labor standards and environmentally sound mandates. The time has come for U.S. companies to show by example to the rest of the world that it is possible to be fair and profitable at the same time. A civic conscience is something that happens even when the cameras are off and the printing presses have stopped. The United States companies should maintain the same level of standards overseas for their workers that they maintain in the states. This can serve as an example for companies around the globe and begin the first steps to changing the way workers are treated globally.

References

Boston-Based Sneaker Maker Denies Union's Charges on Overseas Labor.

Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News; 12/30/1998; Reidy, Chris

Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Comparative E.E.O. law: pregnancy legislation in the United States and Taiwan. (equal employment opportunity law)

Public Personnel Management; 6/22/1996; Kohl, John

Workers rights: labor standards and global trade.

Brookings Review; 9/22/2001; Burtless, Gary

Wal-Mart's Impact on Worldwide Working Conditions Cited in Workers' Demand for WTO Labor, Human Rights Standards.

US Newswire; 12/1/1999

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30 / U.S. Newswire.....

Need Help Writing Your Essay?