The Effects of Globalization on Bangladesh's Ready-Made Garment Industry: The High Cost of Cheap Clothing
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THE EFFECTS OF GLOBALIZATION ON
BANGLADESH'S READY-MADE
GARMENT INDUSTRY: THE HIGH COST
OF CHEAP CLOTHING
INTRODUCTION
G lobalization and the rise of multinational corporations
have significantly transformed the world's labor and pro-
duction markets.I To retain a competitive advantage, many mul-
tinationals have relocated their manufacturing facilities to de-
veloping nations in order to utilize the availability of cheap,
abundant labor, which remains relatively unprotected by gov-
ernmental regulation or organization.2 This trend has been par-
ticularly apparent in the ready-made garment (RMG) indus-
try, where rapidly changing fashion trends and the mechaniza-
tion-resistant nature of fabric render apparel manufacturers ex-
ceptionally reliant on human labor.3 As a result, multinationals,
and the industrialized nations in which they are based, have ac-
tively participated in the globalization of this sector.4
Public concern regarding labor conditions under which these
garments are made has increased alongside globalization.5 In re-
cent years, the RMG industry has faced heightened interna-
tional scrutiny due to allegations of sweatshop practices, unsafe
working conditions, unlivable wages, unreasonable hours, lethal
accidents, and both physical and mental abuses by supervisors
in developing nations around the world.6 In April, 2013, the
1. Maria Gillen, The Apparel Industry Partnership's Free Labor Associa-
tion: A Solution to the Overseas Sweatshop Problem or the Emperor's New
Clothes?, 32 N.Y.U. J. INT'L L. & POL. 1059, 1059-60 (2000).
2. Bureau of Int'l Labor Affairs, U.S. DEP'T OF LABOR, THE APPAREL
INDUSTRY AND CODES OF CONDUCT: A SOLUTION TO THE INTERNATIONAL CHILD
LABOR PROBLEM?, 15, 22 (1996) [hereinafter APPAREL CODES OF CONDUCT]; Gil-
len, supra note 1, at 1059. -
3. Michael Piore, The Economics of the Sweatshop, in No SWEAT: FASHION,
FREE TRADE, AND THE RIGHTS OF GARMENT WORKERS 135, 138 (Andrew Ross ed.,
9, 1997).
4. APPAREL CODES OF CONDUCT, supra note 2, at ii.
5. Id. at 22.
6. Though beyond the scope of this Note, issues of child labor, trafficking,
and exploitation in Bangladesh are sadly prevalent. The U.S. Department of
Labor found as follows:](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/bjil40&div=11&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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The Effects of Globalization on Bangladesh's Ready-Made Garment Industry: The High Cost of Cheap Clothing
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