By Rob Sachs: On Capitol Hill a number of lawmakers have spoken out against Ralph Lauren and the outfit he designed for American athletes to wear at the
Olympic Games in London. Not for the design, but because they were made in China! Here is Senate majority leader Harry Reid: “I think, they should take all the uniforms, put them in a big pile and burn them!” Since the controversy erupted last week Ralph Lauren has committed to making 2014 team uniforms in the US. Here to talk about this is Robert Ross, he’s a professor of sociology at Clark University, he’s also a member of the Board of Directors of Sweatfree Purchasing Consortium. Professor Ross, welcome! What do you make of this back and forth of those on Capitol Hill saying it's a disgrace that American athletes are going to London wearing uniforms made in China?Well, on one hand it's gratifying that the sourcing of apparel for what should be a high-minded activity like the Olympics is gaining some public attention. On the other hand, Rob, the problem here is that the focus is on where they are made, rather than on conditions under which these uniforms are made. I think that if one's concerned about American workers - then the question should be: what are the labor standards that the Lauren contractor factories are operating under? And does this drive down international standards or is Lauren making things in China because they can get 7-day workweeks out of the workers at under a dollar an hour? And the answer is: basically yes. Those are the conditions of Chinese apparel workers. And if that's the case - then this drives down labor standards in the garment marketplace around the world. So the conditions issue for working people is more important than where-question. Source:
Voice of Russia.
