the owner closed the plant and relocated. As the report states, at her new job, which wasn’t unionized, Maria earned only $20 for a 44 hour week. This was less than half of what she earned at her old job, which was at the standard wage for a single mother. Even when she tried to work 55 hours of week, she still didn’t have enough to provide for her and her child (“Leader” 1). This is typical of sweatshop wages. Sweatshop workers all around the world are facing the same situation as Maria. They work as much as their bodies will allow and yet it is still not enough to provide for their families. While wages are one obstacle facing the sweatshop worker, there are still several other issues that must be addressed. One of the biggest problems facing sweatshop workers is the conditions under which they must work. Sweatshops vary in their conditions. One thing is certain though, on a scale the best conditions start at bad and the worst are judged as terrible. There is no bright spot to the scale. But according to the definition, (a workplace where workers are exploited in their wages or benefits and are subject to poor working conditions), the conditions are, by most accounts, hazardous and unsanitary. Typical conditions include sweltering heat and crowded working environments. In addition, in some cases there are not many fire escapes, water fountains, restrooms and other which are necessary to building codes. To avoid making any generalizations I will give you several examples of places where conditions are in desperate need of improvement. Olivia Given, a reporter of the Feminist Organization, spent the summer of 1997 researching sweatshops. Given even went so far as to actually work there as part of her research. Of the conditions she said, Our guides told us about the hours they had worked in sweatshops: 7 days a week, from 7AM to 10PM each day, with a half hour for lunch and one 10 minute ...
