Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Direct payments

Direct payments to Sweatshop workers
  (+5, -3)
(+5, -3)
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against]

Far-East sweatshop workers are often paid a pittance. A protesting mass-boycott of the shops that sell £5 pairs of jeans etc can be counterproductive in that the workers might lose their jobs due to loss of demand, and therefore lose even what little income they do have.

Idea is to allow workers to customise the garment label with their own personal email address or Paypal etc account, or some other unique form of i.d. - consumers pleased with their purchase could then send their financial appreciation and support direct to the actual maker of the garment.

Retailers could advertise this as a positive benefit of shopping with them, and make a feature of only buying from suppliers that run the scheme.

Sure, a lot of third-world workers are illiterate, let alone having access to a computer or Internet Cafe, and the scheme would also be open to abuse by unscrupulous employers who, for example, might fake labels in order skim off any donations - maybe the scheme could be run by an audited charity empowered to do spot-checks to ensure the money actually gets into the employees' hands.

hmmmmm, Jul 13 2008

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       Presumably the items are made by a number of individuals, you know, like on an assembly line.
Texticle, Jul 13 2008
  

       I think that most retailers would prefer you to be able to forget that they use sweatshop labout.
MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 13 2008
  

       There has been a global LETS, you know. That'd work if the rich parts of it weren't full of sodding hippies who never produce anything worthwhile.
nineteenthly, Jul 13 2008
  

       @MB - yes, maybe needs a snappy PR name like er.. 'FairTrade' which attempts to give a similar impression - the difference would be that (if properly done.. etc...) it would actually be a one-to-one transaction/relationship - & you never know, we might end up with lifelong penpals which might open our eyes further about the whole thing.   

       C'mon you Croissants..
hmmmmm, Jul 13 2008
  

       You do know how those croissants are made, don't you? Thousands of small children, endlessly pleating and pressing the pastry...   

       Seriously, though, I don't think this is going to work. You need the consumers to support a brand which then raises standards for its employees (along the lines of Fairtrade, maybe), rather than trying to organise the consumer to pay the workers directly. Apart from anything else, your solution offers no long-term improvement in the situation.
MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 13 2008
  

       Maybe analagous to a 'tip' - the aim being to tip the waiter, rather than the restaurant
hmmmmm, Jul 13 2008
  

       Adjust the idea to include help desk and call center workers.
Noexit, Jul 15 2008
  


 

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