Rescuers work after a building housing several garment factories collapsed in near Dhaka, Bangladesh, on April 24, 2013. After the deadly building collapse, Walmart released a list of factories it had banned. But it has continued receiving shipments from two of those factories
Resource: http://www.propublica.org/article/walmart-accepted-clothing-from-banned-bangladesh-factories
Some of America’s biggest retailers are facing pressure from many sources to improve safety practices in Bangladesh garment factories, following the collapse of the Rana Plaza near Dhaka. In response, Walmart has banned more than 200 factories from producing its merchandise due to serious safety issues, labor violations and/or unauthorized subcontracting; yet some of those factories are still shipping their products to Walmart stores. The retail giant claims that those shipments continue because the products are not a Walmart house brand.
Such a dubious ethical stance brings into question just whose standards such factories need to meet in order to be permitted to be sold by influential retailers such as Walmart.
While some retailers have already signed an accord to pay for fire and building safety upgrades of Bangladesh factories, Walmart has not yet done so, choosing instead to work on an alternative plan that the company claims will improve safety faster, but which is not legally binding.
Most logical people would consider it obvious that it is not a smart business practice to force employees to work in an unsafe or unhealthy environment. Such behavior might bring additional profits for a while, but eventually it will destroy the reputation of a company and its leaders. Worse, it can lead to dissatisfied workers, workplace injuries and illness, and even death. Is that the price we are willing to pay for a cheap shirt and a little extra profit?
References: Grabell, Michael. “Donate.” Top Stories RSS. ProPublica, 12 June 2013. Web. 08 Oct. 2013. <http://www.propublica.org/article/walmart-accepted-clothing-from-banned-bangladesh-factories>.