Words By Sofia k Beck August 18, 2024
Abstract
Have you ever wondered how far the depravity actually goes with any given fast-fashion brand? Unfortunately-- it's pretty far, and this article aims to provide you with modern insight into this industry and it's practices in order to get you started on examining your own relationship with these brands.
Illustration by Sofia k Beck
So, who are we talking about here? Simply put, fast fashion brands.
Brands like; Lulu Lemon, Shein, Anthropology, Forever 21, H&M, Zara, Hot Topic, Victoria's Secret, and Vineyard Vines are some prominent representations of fast-fashion companies. While not all of these companies share the same traits with what kind of fast-fashion company we'll be discussing today, each and every one of them outsources labour to foreign countries.
While this on its surface doesn't seem like a huge deal, the subtext is something many people don't consider and is the first thing we are going to look into-- worker's rights.
In these foreign (often 3rd world) countries, manufacturers are regularly contracted to make incredibly large quantities for these fast-fashion companies. This is due to a number of factors but down to two main ones, the cost of the workers and what these companies can get away with legally. This allows companies to easily overlook harmful practices that are illegal in many other countries. These manufacturers, located in poor communities, allow this uneven balance of power in order to bring much needed money into their own country they otherwise wouldn't get if they had laws protecting workers. This starts the gross cycle we see performed by hundreds of companies today.
Fashion textile workers in asian countries surveyed, on average, make approximately $200 USD every month for their labour. Consider that is with a 45+ hour workweek, 7 days a week, limited time off if any, and more frequently than not hostility or outright abuse from management due to the pressure of deadlines from these mega corps. With 12-16 hour working days, and 30 days on average in a month, that can be roughly calculated to $0.90 an hour (Business and Human Rights Centre). This is a generous estimation given the secrecy these manufacturers commonly hold.
On top of this, these clothing quantity orders are associated with strict deadlines in order for these companies to constantly have "new and trendy" styles in-store and online for consumers. They must be planned months (sometimes even upwards of a year) in advance. This aspect of the culture of fast-fashion creates multiple branching issues.
First these foreign manufacturers who already have shaky laws in worker's rights will outsource work, often off the books, to smaller manufacturers who may not honor their worker's rights. So, on paper [Insert fast-fashion brand here] isn't directly supporting unsafe working conditions and child labour-- but they inadvertently are by turning an eye to this practice and choosing countries that allow this practice to flourish. And sadly it is because these brands directly benefit from this power imbalance. These benefits include getting their orders on time, paying less money, and dodging massive fines that they would otherwise need to pay for exploiting workers in this way.
A large misconception of fast-fashion is that people don't make the clothes-- machines do and so that's why they're so cheap, right? Well, while machines play a large roll in speeding up the process of clothing production, each and ever garment is touched by human hands every step of the way. On average, any given garment you own was touched by approximately 100 different workers in order to come together (Paula Luu). So despite all of these essential people needed to make this production happen their work is kept undervalued in order to benefit the fast-fashion companies taking advantage of them.
Let's do a hypothetical walk through of how a company tries (and often succeeds) to bring you, the customer, in and never let you go. While it may be argued to be understandable as to why a company would want to lower their costs, it is important to understand that every decision they make is purely in order to maximize profits for their investors by all means necessary. These companies will often only ever lower their prices on a product in order to get more people to purchase, not because they are thinking about the financial woes of their core demographic and how to help. Some fast fashion brands try to incentivize consumers by stirring up buzz on a false scarcity. Another "limited time" 50% OFF End of season sale that is "one time only!" you will begin to notice comes up every single season.
As a consumer you are allowed to choose where your money goes and who you support. Realizing the power is in your hands and your own actions is the first step to breaking out of the cycle fast-fashion wants to force people into. You do not have to buy that dress, hell yeah you can if you want, but you do not need it. Starting to examine all your purchasing decisions in this way can lead to a clearer path for a sustainable lifestyle. Remember, nothing is wrong with some baby steps!
The second problem with fast-fashion companies trying to eliminate cost by any means necessary is that the very quality of these garments is being compromised alongside the workers making them. With the rise in low-cost plastic blend fabrics that dominated the late 20th century, these kinds of companies got hooked and never let go. The low price was just too addicting, and now we're stuck with these plastics being normalized. These fabrics were incredibly cheap to make and thus the upscaling of price from cost of production to selling to the consumer only got bigger and bigger over time.
Due to this, almost none of our modern wardrobes (if purchased in the last two decades) have any biodegradable, breathable fibers. Around 75% of the modern global textile production results in synthetic textiles. 55% of these fibers are specifically polyester fabric (Xuandong Chen).
Most tags are scattered with combinations of polyester, spandex, and rayon. It was found that of Shein's clothing catalogue, around 64% of fabric was or was blended with polyester (Seattle Times). This new and continuous introduction of plastic as opposed to biodegradable fabrics has spelled disaster for the environment and us ever since.
The textile industry is the 2nd largest waster of clean water in the world, right behind agriculture. Every single time you wash your clothes plastic is being released into the water through a phenomenon of environmental poisoning called micro plastics. These pieces of plastic are identified as less than 5mm bodies of plastic that can transcend most modern filters and thus can enter most any organic life it comes into contact with. (Microplastics: National Ocean Service). In efforts to eliminate them they just become even smaller, nanoplastics, which are less than 1mm (Environmental Health Perspectives). This water is then flushed out of your machine and into the water system, drinking water, and eventually the ocean.
Due to this societal normalization of shedding plastics into our water daily it was recently found, from the University of New Mexico, that of 70 male participants (some including canine) all 70 had the presence of micro plastics in their testicles (Forbes). You read that right, their testicles. This issue has impacted us now on a cellular level, and this isn't without health complications many of the world's population is now experiencing.
It has been found that this presence of a foreign body in vital reproductive organs can lead to sterility, and the implications of the entire world now being affected by micro plastics can only lead us to a few conclusions.
So, someone has to make these garments, and these companies are desperate to keep this dysfunctional cycle flowing so their bottom line isn't impacted. That means this cycle for the time being won't be shaken unless lawful change is implemented to target these corporations. The amount of businesses that still choose to participate in this cycle is frightening, and in this generational reckoning of sustainable minded consumers their tactics are just getting exposed more and more everyday. If you are a business owner yourself, understanding that this "fad" isn't going away and is in fact a response to the persistent abuse of a power-divided system is important.
Be a part of the change today, and reap the rewards of the difference tomorrow.
References
Luu, Paula. "The Hundred People Behind Your Favorite Pair of Jeans." Erb Institute, University of Michigan, 23 Apr. 2018, https://erb.umich.edu/2018/04/23/the-hundred-people-behind-your-favorite-pair-of-jeans/. Accessed 17 Aug. 2024.
"Microplastics." National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html. Accessed 17 Aug. 2024.
Roeloffs, Mary. "How Do Microplastics Get in Human Body? Found in Hearts, Testicles, Blood; Health Risk Nanoplastics." Forbes, 22 May 2024, https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/05/22/how-do-microplastics-get-in-human-body-found-in-hearts-testicals-blood-health-risk-nanoplastics/. Accessed 17 Aug. 2024.
Rosenberg, Mike. "Fast Fashion Report Cards Show What’s Really in Your Clothes." The Seattle Times, 15 Aug. 2024, https://www.seattletimes.com/business/fast-fashion-report-cards-show-whats-really-in-your-clothes/. Accessed 17 Aug. 2024.
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Chen, Xuandong et al. “Circular Economy and Sustainability of the Clothing and Textile Industry.” Materials Circular Economy vol. 3,1 (2021): 12. doi:10.1007/s42824-021-00026-2
Lee, Yongjin et al. “Health Effects of Microplastic Exposures: Current Issues and Perspectives in South Korea.” Yonsei medical journal vol. 64,5 (2023): 301-308. doi:10.3349/ymj.2023.0048
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre. "Ethiopia's Garment Workers Are World's Lowest Paid, Says Report." Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, 19 May 2020, https://www.business-humanrights.org/en/latest-news/ethiopias-garment-workers-are-worlds-lowest-paid-says-report/. Accessed 20 Aug. 2024.
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