by: Alexandra Kuhle
Since 1994 Nike has been outsourcing its labor to factories in third world countries. Some would look to Nike and believe they are helping someone who is unemployed find a job and have a decent income. In 1996, when Time Magazine ran an article about 12 year old Tariq sewing together a Nike soccer ball and only being paid 60 cents, Nike knew they were in trouble. In 1998, child labor activists asked Nike to raise the age requirement of workers they hired to 18. At the time, Nike had been found to employ children as young as eight years old for a wage of 16 cents an hour. The laborers, many under-age, earned about $3 for the $100 shoes that are sold in stores across the world. Nike gave their word that they would monitor their factories out of the U.S., but by no means does that mean Nike actually pulled through on their word.
“Philip Knight, the company chairman, clearly stung by reports of children as young as 10 making shoes, clothing and footballs in Pakistan and Cambodia, attempted to convince Nike’s critics that it had only ever employed children accidentally (admits to mistake).” Using children for labor at Nike factories is more than accidental since it is happening year after year. Although many factories have been found to use underage children the Asian-American Free Labor Institute in Indonesia states, “Nike factory workers file more complaints about wage violations than any other shoe company (Nike Facts).” Nike factory owners also have been known to abuse their workers, lock them in the factories, take away their passports, and not let them return home.
University of Oregon’s association with a company that treats its employees this way is not something to be proud of. In 2000, Oregon students protested that Nike should have random inspections of their factories. Former UO President Dave Frohnmayer agreed to this inspection program at first, however, as soon as Nike heard about the protest, Frohnmayer was called to their headquarters. Nike told the university president that this was unacceptable and that if the inspection program were to go through, its $25 million donation for Autzen stadium would be rescinded. Frohnmayer came back to the university explaining there would be inspections of Nike factories, but the factories would be well informed of the exact date of the inspection. “It was obvious what would happen, if you know the day of the inspection the plant is brought up to wonderful standards on that day,” Chuck Hunt, sociology professor at the UO.
Other Universities such as the University of Washington, University of North Carolina, and UW Madison have stopped dealing with Nike. “The protesters from the Student Labor Action Project at UW were trying to bring attention to $1.5 million in severance they say is owed to apparel workers at Nike factories,” states the Seattle online newspaper. These schools acknowledge when a company is being unethical. These Universities, as well as others, have terminated their contracts with Nike Does the University of Oregon want to be associated with a company that pays no mind to the mistreatment of their workers? It’s time for Oregon to step up and start thinking about its reputation and what it stands for rather than thinking about the dollar signs.
http://ihscslnews.org/view_article.php?id=32
http://www1.american.edu/TED/nike.htm
