I have always been interested in fashion, it is a way to express one’s creativity and individuality. I never really thought about how my clothes were made growing up, let alone where they came from. I was born into an upper middle-class family in a well-developed country; I was not necessarily concerned with world issues outside of the United States.  As I got older I started to really invest myself into my clothing. I would wear all the hot designers of that time; not knowing or caring what went into the process of making such stylish clothing. It was not until around the age of thirteen when I had heard that most of the stylish clothing that I was wearing was manufactured in sweatshops. Sweatshops are factories that manufacture items and apparel. The workers do manual labor and are underpaid in unfavorable conditions. Sweatshops are located internationally. America is capable of manufacturing their own clothing. We have all the resources and technology, but choose not to utilize them to the fullest compacity. This is because trading internationally is cheaper and produces more merchandise from a wider radius.

It started in the 1960s, the average U.S. citizen spent more than 10 percent of their income on shoes and clothing, that is equivalent to 558 dollars being spent each year, adding up to 4,388 dollars in today’s society. On average, the typical American bought fewer than 25 pieces of clothing. Roughly 95 percent of that clothing was made in the U.S. Mid-1970s, America saw the rise of factories and large textile mills in China and other countries developing in Latin America. These businesses ran cheap labor and offered raw materials from the source. They also manufactured quickly. Acknowledging that U.S. citizen workers were making a living from working in American made factories; the industries decided that moving their operations overseas would be more practical and less costly, leaving U.S. workers to find new jobs. 

Globalization is when a country expands their business to other countries, decreasing the cost of manufacturing and increasing productivity. This is why America went from locally made to foreign made. Now the average American citizen spends about less than 3.5 percent on apparel a year. This is more than before. Globalization is perceived in many ways. One of them being is that globalization is good for the economy; contrary to popular belief, child labor has decreased because of globalization. Ronald Bailey in “Globalization Is Good for You!” states that a World Development study, "Trade Openness, Foreign Direct Investment and Child Labor," by Eric Neumayer of the London School of Economics and Indra de Soysa of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology refutes the idea of child labor due to globalization, their analysis showed that the more open a country is to trading internationally and investing in foreign markets, the lower occurrence of exploitation.

Globalization can be good for the economy, because it increases job opportunities for those that live in poverty in foreign countries. In the article “Everything We Knew About Sweatshops Was Wrong.”  Written by Christopher Blattman and Stefan Dercon for the New York Times, they explain on what it was like to visit Ethiopia and to observe their factories. Ethiopia’s distribution manufacturing was thriving. Their factories appeared to be well-kept and professional. When a new factory line opened, they saw ongoing rows of applicants. Them being young, unmarried women. They did a randomized trial; since there were more applicants qualified than there were jobs. Five businesses agreed to hire qualified applicants by a lottery; a beverage bottler, a garment factory, a shoemaker and two industrial greenhouse operations. They followed the 947 applicants who were and were not offered the job over a year, having them surveyed multiple times. Most people who had gotten an industrial job changed their minds. “A majority quit within the first months. They ended up doing what those who had not gotten the job offers did – going back to the family farm, taking a construction job or selling goods at the market” (Blattman and Dercon). In the end, their predictions of the applicants keeping their jobs were wrong. In fact, quitting was the better decision for most. People would rather work in agriculture or selling in the market than to work in a factory, and they made just about the same amount of money. This could be due to personal preference in the work environment. Factories tend to be in an industrial environment, and congested with unreasonable working hours and long shifts. 

I never knew that there was more to fashion than just how the clothes looked. Fashion has a lot that goes behind the scenes to make it what it is. Globalization is just a piece of the puzzle. Globalization could not be as bad as when I first heard about it as a young teen. As time goes on America continues to find new ways to reinvent itself, and more innovative ways to manufacture their items. Not everyone agrees with the direction America is going in, in terms of globalization. American workers are upset because their jobs are being taken away from them. Protesters from all over are upset because of children working in sweatshops. Families of passed loved ones are upset because of the stressful conditions they were put to work under. Income inequality for factory workers. The list goes on. There are pros to globalization, but there is also cons.

One of the cons of being the average U.S. factory employee who used to make a pretty good living in the past, now barely gets paid enough for typical living expenses. Some economists believe that globalization is demoting the average American factory worker who has been working for years at the same factory; people who have been making a living for nearly a decade. It is becoming an issue now because wages are being lowered for cheap distribution. Manufacturing factories put the price before worker. They lower the cost for distribution, so the prices are cheaper for the average consumer, this means that employees get paid a lower wage. In terms of money, distribution is unequal in several countries between the employee and the distributor. Globalization, has for most countries, caused slow growth and increasing inequality. Development of industrial exports in underprivileged countries increase the demand for untrained but literate workers. This leads to unequal distribution in income for workers who are trained but illiterate.

Suicide is attempted or committed by factory employees in protest to the way they are being treated. For example, in China at a factory called Foxconn, they manufacture electronics. Foxconn is one of the world’s largest contract manufacturers, which means that it makes much of its income as a ready-to-order manufacturer, not by selling its own name brand products. CEO Terry Gou, of Foxconn corporation states that Foxconn is “the most trusted and preferred partner in all aspects of global electronics outsourcing to help customers de-risk their business” (Chan and Pun). Unfortunately, on May 27th 2010, 13 young employees attempted or committed suicide. Details of the death are unknown, but the conditions of the factory appear to be less than favorable.

The factory compound was gated; inside was more than ten dormitory buildings that were situated at the south of the company’s production facilities (Chan and Pun). Banned from living in the city where their products are sold, the employees have to search for accommodation not far from their employer, or decide to live in the company dormitories. It is congested outside of the compound with more than 50,000 workers that occupy every single village house. Factory workers experience inequality in income and nonstop working hours. Electronics are in high demand, and with Apple being one of its bigger contributories, it can lead to a stressful work environment. The majority of the employees have to work overtime in order to get paid an adequate amount of money. The majority of Foxconn’s employees are young adults without families. They are to be considered “healthy”, but in the event of the suicides that is to be determined.

When it comes to globalization there are things that need to be changed in order to find a middle ground. I am not completely against globalization, but I do believe there needs to be change. I have talked about the pros and cons of globalization, now I would like to give my viewpoint on the subject. There are many ways to go about globalization. The old globalization is dying and a new structure can make globalization stronger. Businesses need to stop avoiding taxes and pay decent wages. The key to shifting globalization to a better future is to make a new deal with businesses, society, and the government. Executives politicians, and investors need to come to a consensus on new rules and abide by them. “Concerning every business, the key factors are to pay taxes, use their influence to lobby for maintainable, fair policies, and make sure the jobs they create offer decent pay and decent work along their supply chains. That includes the first mile where the worst conditions and most child labor are to be found” (Brown).

Technology can also help with globalization. Efforts are being made to better understand how the economy works, and how to make globalization more pleasant for everyone. Robotics in the manufacturing factories could stop illegal labor indecency. It would also make for more efficient manufacturing productivity. Robots never tire and can produce at rapid speeds. You may be concerned with laborers having less jobs, but in fact, that is not the case. 

According to a WTO report, observed studies overpoweringly found that, with a few relevant exceptions, changes with technology does not greatly reduce cumulative labor demand and employment. In industrialized and industrializing countries alike, the most apparent impact of change in technology is not on the level of employment, but on the types of jobs and skills that are in demand. Technology and employees can work together harmoniously, if the future permits it.

Now that I am older, I realized that fashion is so much more than the surface or glitz and glam. Fashion has a lot of working gears that make it up. Having a passion for fashion made me want to know more about the other parts of it, like who makes the clothing? Who distributes it? Who advertises it? I asked myself a lot of these questions during my research for this essay. I learned a lot and my morals have changed a bit. I am now more aware of the labels on my clothing; however, I will still wear that clothing knowing it was made internationally. Morally, I feel conflicted and I want to find ways to help with globalization, but I am only one person and globalization is more than just only buying American made clothing. I want the reader to walk away with more knowledge of fashion and the workings behind it such as globalization than when they had first started reading it. My goal was to provide information as fact based as possible, so the reader could come to their own consensus. I now have a much different viewpoint of fashion now then when I first started researching for this essay. I may not have cared or understood globalization as a kid, but now that I am older I have a deeper understanding of what it is. I have a deeper appreciation for fashion and what goes on behind it. I hope the reader leaves feeling the same. This project has been an eyeopener and I will continue to do my own personal research as I learn more about the fashion industry, and the workings behind it.
