The globalization of the economy gave many companies access to the labor markets of developing countries. These organizations have greatly benefited from the opportunity to cut their operational costs. However, very often it is done at the expense of employees who have to work in very poor conditions.
For instance, one can refer to such as company as Nike that is often accused of creating sweatshops in which the rights of workers are often violated (Butler, 2010, unpaged). It s believed that the employees have to work long hours while being exposed to hazardous materials and high temperature.
Moreover, it is believed that the employees of the company do not have access to healthcare services (Butler, 2010, unpaged). Finally, it is alleged that they are often abused by supervisors who can easily dismiss employees if they do the slightest mistakes. This is why Nike is often criticized by political activists.
Similar accusations have been leveled at such a company as Apple. It is believed that the employees of this organization can be exposed to dangerous chemical substances that can impair a person’s health (Walters, 2012, unpaged). Furthermore, they have to work approximately 15 hours per day (Walters, 2012, unpaged).
Apple is blamed for not ensuring the safety of employees. For example, one can refer to the explosion that took place in one of the factories (Walters, 2012, unpaged). Therefore, journalist often question Apple’s claim about their corporate social responsibility (Walters, 2012, unpaged). Certainly, one cannot say that each of these accusations has been substantiated.
In some case, they may be just exaggerated. Nevertheless, they are still worth considering because they can throw light on working conditions of people who live in developing countries.
Certainly, companies cannot be prohibited from doing operations in developing countries. Moreover, they create jobs for people who often cannot secure employment. Overall, there are several approaches that Western business can take. They can continue their practices and only comply with the laws of developing countries such as China, India, or Mexico.
However, this policy completely contradicts their claims about corporate social responsibility. Additionally, such an approach cannot gain the loyalty of employees. It seems that it is quite ethical to employ workers living in these regions if they are treated decently and if they are provided with an opportunity to improve the quality of their lives.
This does not mean that these people should receive the compensation paid to American workers; their salaries can be lower. Nevertheless, businesses from the United States or Europe must make sure that the working conditions do not pose a threat to the life or health of workers.
Moreover, the employees must be compensated for extra hours of work. They should also have the opportunity to form trade unions and voice their discontent to corporate executives. Finally, workers should be protected from the abuse of supervisors. These are the main standards that they should meet in order to assist their employees.
Certainly, outsourcing practices can always be criticized in part because they deprive many people of their jobs. Nevertheless, is also almost impossible to prohibit companies from acting in this way.
So, these organizations should be made to take care of workers who are often treated as inferior. This is the main problem that should be reduced. This issue can be addressed if the governments of developing countries set higher standards for foreign companies
Reference List
Butler, M. (2010). Nike’s Love Affair with Sweatshops: Still Doing It. Retrieved from https://labornotes.org/blogs/2010/04/nike%E2%80%99s-love-affair-sweatshops-still-doing-it
Walters, S. (2012). Apple still shamed by China’s iPod sweatshops SIX YEARS after Mail on Sunday exposé. Retrieved from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2096551/Apple-shamed-Chinas-iPod-sweatshops-SIX-YEARS-expos.html