Made in China

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Many people only associate cost with their wallet. However there's other external costs associated with producing goods and services. Many of the bargan priced products we purchase are produced in China, at the expense of their working class:
China's migrant workers are becoming an "urban underclass," held down by economic exploitation and residency rules that deny them access to medical, housing and education benefits, Amnesty International said in a report released Thursday.

Workers drawn from China's vast rural hinterland are often forced to work overtime and fined for infractions such as being late or not meeting production quotas, the London-based rights group said.

Their pay is also routinely withheld to keep them from changing jobs, a practice that helps keep wages down despite rising demand for workers and annual economic growth of more than 10 percent, the report said.

"China's so-called economic 'miracle' comes at a terrible human cost -- rural migrants living in the cities experience some of the worst abuse in the work place," Catherine Baber, Amnesty International's deputy Asia Pacific director
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What do you think about China and their treatment of their working class? Do you think China will do anything to improve working conditions for their people? Is there anything the workers can do to help themselves? And do you ever consider these external costs when you purchase imported products? Please discuss.
 
Hey, sounds like mexican migrant workers. There's no way fruit and vegetable growing in California would be anywhere near profitable without these migrant workers, who are often mistreated, and paid less than minimum wage.
 
I think as long as China exports as much as they do nothing much will change in the immediate future. There is such a demand for cheap merchandise all over the world that their entire market rides on the backs of these unfortunates.

In the short term I'd say that the only way to fight that brand of socialism is with more socialism (unions) but even if every worker struck and refused to report to work their labor lines would be as porous as a sponge. There are so many people looking for jobs that their replacements would practically be ushered in as they were walking out, even for the pittance that is apparently being offered.

In the long term the problem will defeat itself. You cannot maintain 10%, or even lesser meaningful annual growth, with an undervalued, overworked labor force. Successful economies aren't machines and they can't be restricted to roles of mass production, which is certainly what China appears to be focused on. Their current philosophy is feed the consuming nations. It will work for a while, especially considering the seemingly insatiable appetite for cheap consumables, but economies are highly dynamic and consumption is necessary perpetuate them. They're circular. Eventually the Chinese will have the realization that they are slowly digging themselves into a hole forced upon them.

I actually do think about these issues a lot, namely every time I see the words MADE IN CHINA on the bottom of a product I've purchased. And lately it doesn't matter what the product is. I've become convinced that every single retail item on earth is currently being manufactured there.
 
Sarcasmo said:
I actually do think about these issues a lot, namely every time I see the words MADE IN CHINA on the bottom of a product I've purchased. And lately it doesn't matter what the product is. I've become convinced that every single retail item on earth is currently being manufactured there.
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Exactly, I don't have the free time to do the necessary research in order to avoid buying anything not made under working conditions that I may not agree with.
 
China is really no different than any other successful economy; they are all based on slavery in one form or another. Not to get offtopic, but obviously the US used to be the same way and look at us now. China may have to break a few eggs to make a tasty omlette...
 
fly said:
China is really no different than any other successful economy; they are all based on slavery in one form or another. Not to get offtopic, but obviously the US used to be the same way and look at us now. China may have to break a few eggs to make a tasty omlette...
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That's what I meant by my rambling, incoherent response. The problem will fix itself in the end.
 
My biggest fear about China is that their idiotic population control schemes are going to bite them in the ass by the middle of the century when the entire nation is basically a giant sausage fest and their population is going to plummet, collapsing their economy and taking much of the world with it. Without China America's economy will struggle; without both the world's economy will suffer greatly.
 
Sarcasmo said:
I think as long as China exports as much as they do nothing much will change in the immediate future. There is such a demand for cheap merchandise all over the world that their entire market rides on the backs of these unfortunates.

In the short term I'd say that the only way to fight that brand of socialism is with more socialism (unions) but even if every worker struck and refused to report to work their labor lines would be as porous as a sponge. There are so many people looking for jobs that their replacements would practically be ushered in as they were walking out, even for the pittance that is apparently being offered.

In the long term the problem will defeat itself. You cannot maintain 10%, or even lesser meaningful annual growth, with an undervalued, overworked labor force. Successful economies aren't machines and they can't be restricted to roles of mass production, which is certainly what China appears to be focused on. Their current philosophy is feed the consuming nations. It will work for a while, especially considering the seemingly insatiable appetite for cheap consumables, but economies are highly dynamic and consumption is necessary perpetuate them. They're circular. Eventually the Chinese will have the realization that they are slowly digging themselves into a hole forced upon them.

I actually do think about these issues a lot, namely every time I see the words MADE IN CHINA on the bottom of a product I've purchased. And lately it doesn't matter what the product is. I've become convinced that every single retail item on earth is currently being manufactured there.
Click to expand...

Yeah I'm not the biggest fan of unionized labor, however there are situations when I think it's benifical for the workers AND the society as a whole. However with all their migrant workers I don't see how unionizing would be effective. But iirc, unionization is what got the ball rolling in the states for improved working conditions and such. Yes no?
 
ChikkenNoodul said:
Exactly, I don't have the free time to do the necessary research in order to avoid buying anything not made under working conditions that I may not agree with.
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Nor do I. But when I'm 100% more likely to buy something labeled "Fair Trade" than something that isn't. But I do try to pay attention to where things are produced, especially at the grocery store. Buying locally grown produce helps support my local economy AND it helps reduce pollution/enery consumption because my strawberrys came from Florida rather than all the way from California.
 
I watched a piece in class last semester that showed Mexican immigrants making .30/ bushel of tomatoes picked. Said baskets were about the size of a kitchen garbage can. How many of those can you fill in an hour?

As far as China goes they have separate hubs for manufacturing various goods. On a generic scale we could say "T Shirt City", "Watch City", etc. The evidence points to Vietnam and certain African states possibly taking over China's role within the next 50 years or so.

**edit

Regarding the initial topic, I don't take into consideration where things are produced when making decisions. I do think about it ex post facto. A guy at the garage sale said our lamp was handmade and I said, "Yes, by little, hungry hands." It was actually a cheap Rooms To Go piece.
 
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