Top 3 Ways Sweatshops Help The Poor Escape Poverty

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Sweatshops should all be shut down because of the terrible working conditions and unfair treatment of workers, right? But what about the people who choose to work in these conditions? If we look at sweatshops from the perspective of the world's poor, we may find that we should not be trying to close their doors after all. Professor Matt Zwolinski explains three reasons sweatshops may actually be worth keeping: sweatshop jobs may be better than the alternatives, closing sweatshops just reduces job options for the poor, and it is better to do something to end global poverty than to do nothing. From the perspective of the world's poor, which looks better: an American company that outsources to sweatshops and provides jobs in developing countries, or an American company that hires only U.S. workers?

Check out the New York Times article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/27/wor...

Check out Matt Zwolinski's blog here:
http://bleedingheartlibertarians.com/

Minimum Wage Debate: How Sweatshops Are Actually Good for the Poor:
http://www.policymic.com/articles/945...

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[logun24x7]

Actually I’ve been in sales and manufacturing for over 26 years. I’m quite familiar with the industry and both the shenanigans pulled off by off-shore manufactures and the convenient blind eye of off-shore purchasing agents and western consumers. Do a search for sweatshop disasters/fires, Bangladesh is the norm not the exception. When grotesque profits are being made in trade for human life we all should have something to say about it.

[AmauryPenseur]

Is this guy stupid? Probably not... Then I conclude he made this video to purposely deceive people -> propaganda. If those workers had their own little farm, even a small parcel, they could create much more value on their own than in a sweat shop. The problem is that the majority of the land (& resources) is in the hands of either private owners or a corrupt government. If they want to be able to eat, they MUST work in such a factory. Coercion can come from private, public and nature forces.

[neothugx]

money is made out of thin air by banks... what's your point?

also money is not the basis of life. we don't really need money, although I suppose it's a good tool for trading

[Kmak Milly]

This guy reminds me of crooked cops:" I shot the suspect in the head for his own protection".

[Gez501]

Working in a sweatshop is not just to do with wages... it is to do with safety, stopping harrassment, being humane, and giving the workforce dignity. The sweatshop owner wants to sell at inflated prices and the customers want cheap goods. Any decent human being would want to put some of the profits back into the company to improve the workers conditions etc. Business should not be based upon the lowest common denominator. Big Businesses are like the Banksters. Shop local. Stay small, not greedy.

[Jerome Avery]

and they call us anarchists utopians... money has to come from somewhere and good luck making that happen

[Jerome Avery]

no.. coercion of such proportions mostly comes from government. also.. why is it that only the sociopaths who don't care how their workers are treated build these sweatshops.. why don't us good people who care get together and create more humane alternatives that are still profitable

[Jerome Avery]

what you say is true, but it doesn't change the fact that people chose to work at sweatshops because they are a better alternative than the rural life. now what critics should do is open sweatshops that turn a profit while treating people humanely.. if I had the money I would do this because giving poor people jobs is the best cure for poverty

[kmanc]

the rich only pay these people such a low income cause they're desperately greedy

if a producer intends to shut down his factory, he should pay his workers severance pay for a short time while they look for another job. why is it justifiable to exploit these people just because we've taken everything from them & they've run out of options?

[nawfv]

So u tryna tell me its good to have sweatshops in my homeland the richest continent on the planet and pay my ppl 58 dollars a week??????????

How bout you take yo azz to a sweat shop since its "Better" wtf Im living in the Twilight Zone

[logun24x7]

I’m saying that western retailers have as much moral responsibility to ensure the off shore working conditions in the factories they do business with don’t kill people as they do to make sure the products they sell don’t kill people here in the west. And thankfully over 31 companies signed the Bangladesh safety plan unfortunately some of the top retailers have refused to sign on. Do a search for LeeCamp2 on you tube he sums up about what I think in his latest video.