“Beauty is pain.”
-Frenchy (character) from Grease (1978)
French manicure and pedicure | Getty
May of 2015, The New York Times, uncovered the realities that many manicurists faced in New York in the article, “The Price of Nice Nails”. “The New York Times interviewed more than 150 nail salon workers and owners, in four languages, and found that a vast majority of workers are paid below minimum wage; sometimes they are not even paid.”
Living conditions for Xue Sun | Nicole Bengiveno/The New York Times
Many store owners viewed themselves “as heroic, shouldering the burden of training workers and the risk of employing people who are not legally permitted to work in the United States.” Sona Grung, owner of Sona Nails denied not paying her employees minimum wage, yet she defended the practice of underpaying beginner employees. According to Friedman “If you work in a nail salon for $35, it’s very good.” said Grung. After The New York Times posted “The Price of Nice Nails,” awareness of the hardships that these women face are brought to light and many workers are taking action against these store owners.
The problem is that people are willfully blind to the situation at hand and letting unethical business owners continue to exploit their workers. One may argue that not supporting these businesses means that we are taking away these women’s source of income. What is the solution? Taking action, raising awareness and being aware of all the wrong that is around us.
sources:
http://www.thefrisky.com/2015-05-07/heres-a-shocker-your-10-manicure-isnt-actually-ethical/
picture sources:
http://charismaspalounge.com/nail-menu/