Sweatshop

For other uses, see Sweatshop (disambiguation).
A sweatshop in the United States c. 1890

A sweatshop or sweat factory is a crowded[1] workplace with very poor or illegal working conditions, including little to no breaks, inadequate work space, insufficient lighting and ventilation, or uncomfortably or dangerously high or low temperatures. The work may be difficult, tiresome, dangerous, climatically challenging, or underpaid. Employees in sweatshops may work long hours with unfair wages, regardless of laws mandating overtime pay or a minimum wage; child labor laws may also be violated. Women make up 85 to 90% of sweatshop workers and may be forced by employers to take birth control and routine pregnancy tests to avoid supporting maternity leave or providing health benefits.[2]

The Fair Labor Association's "2006 Annual Public Report" inspected factories for FLA compliance in 18 countries including Bangladesh, El Salvador, Colombia, Guatemala, Malaysia, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, China, India, Vietnam, Honduras, Indonesia, Brazil, Mexico, and the US.[3] The U.S. Department of Labor's "2015 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor" found that "18 countries did not meet the International Labour Organization's recommendation for an adequate number of inspectors."[4]

  1. ^ Tuerk, Richard (2020). "Sweatshops". Salem Press Encyclopedia – via Research Starters.
  2. ^ "Myanmar's women face pregnancy tests and sexual harassment in sweatshops". ABC News. 2018-04-14. Retrieved 2021-12-05.
  3. ^ "2006 Annual Public Report" (PDF). fairlabor.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 12, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2017.
  4. ^ "2015 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor" (PDF). dol.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 23, 2019. Retrieved August 28, 2017.