The Ethics Behind “Shop Til You Drop”

Shopping.

Let’s face it: many of us love to shop for clothes, shoes, cosmetics, etc. Nothing feels better than snagging a great deal at a sale or on Boxing Day, where clothes are sold dirt cheap to order clear inventory and prepare for new incoming products. With the constant flow of fashion trends, big name brands compete to put out products that are up-to-date with the most popular styles at prices that are widely affordable, and the fast fashion industry is continuously adapting itself to produce more quickly. Unfortunately, not all garments are made equally–it is often at the expense of workers in the Global South that we have clothes on our back.

It’s a reality that many of us acknowledge but don’t necessarily know how to avoid: to buy a $6.95 shirt, somewhere along the line there has to be sacrifice. Generally, the cheaper the cost, the cheaper the material, the cheaper the wages paid to those who made it. This ensures that the product is produced cheaply and quickly, while still generating a profit for the brand. The result, in addition to drastically unfair wages, is a compromise on the safety and well being of those working in the garment factories, often using the labor of children for. Consider the Rana Plaza collapse in April 2013 where 1129 people were killed when a building containing a garment factory collapsed. Personal accounts of the disaster highlight the tragedy unsafe work environments caused.

So, what can we as consumers do? Most clothing brands have a Corporate Social Responsibility page on their websites, where you can look into the company’s policies for ensuring their workers are treated fairly, and that the company holds themselves accountable for their environmental impacts. Thrift and secondhand shopping is another way to reduce the amount of demand put on the clothing industry. A little bit of creativity goes a long way.

What about other products that we buy? Anyone who shops for food, chocolate, or coffee has probably encountered the “Fair Trade” certification, indicating that the product was made in a way that provides fair wages to the workers. Many corporations try to use Fair Trade to promote employment in developing countries; but what do consumers not often realize is the difficulty that companies have to go through to become Fair Trade certified. As an alternative, Certified B Corporations are easier to become certified, and actually distribute more profit from the sale of the product to the workers than Fair Trade products.

Not all products we buy will have flashing lights to indicate whether or not it is supportive of the workers and economies in the developing country that it is manufactured. As shoppers and consumers of everything from electronics, to clothing, to food, we have a responsibility to be informed about what we are buying and whom we are supporting. Taking the time to do some research goes a long way. Wishing you smart and happy shopping!

Special thanks to QPID’s guest speaker on Wednesday November 11th Craig Vandermeer. Craig is the CEO and founder of Insight Global Education, an organization that aims to facilitate learning about development through engagement with communities in developing countries.