Transcript The Basic Necessities of Life

The Basic Necessities of Life
A subset presentation based loosely on
a paper entitled, “Women in the U.S.
Textile and Garment Industry.”
by Jennifer Leslie
A little history
• Lowell Mills,
Massachusetts 1836
• International Ladies'
Garment Workers' Union
(ILGWU) 1900
• Women's Trade Union
League (WTUL) 1903
• Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
March 25, 1911
• Union of Needletrades,
Industrial and Textile
Employees and Hotel
Employees and
Restaurant Employees
(UNITE HERE) 1995,
2004
UNITED STATES (2000) in hundreds of thousands
International Labour Organization. 20 April 2006.
SEGREGAT database Data on employment by sex and detailed occupational groups
(http://laborsta.ilo.org/, http://laborsta.ilo.org/applv8/data/segregate.html)
Total
Men
Women
Total
<35
years
>=35
years
Total
%
Total
<35
years
>=35
years
Total
%
Total
<35
years
>=35
years
Dressmakers
77
11
67
6
7
2
3
72
93
9
63
Precision textile, apparel, furnishings
machine workers
192
45
147
88
45
28
60
104
54
16
87
Tailors
27
7
20
18
66
4
14
9
33
3
6
Upholsterers
64
24
40
50
78
21
29
13
20
3
10
Shoe repairers
15
3
13
10
66
1
8
6
40
2
4
Misc. precision apparel & fabric workers
8
0
8
4
50
0
4
4
50
0
4
Winding & twisting machine operators
48
17
32
11
22
5
7
37
77
12
25
Textile, apparel, & furnishings machine
operators
854
303
551
264
30
124
140
591
69
179
411
Knitting, looping, taping, weaving
machine operators
28
6
22
9
32
2
7
20
71
5
14
Textile cutting machine operators
3
1
3
3
100
1
2
1
33
-
1
Textile sewing machine operators
425
136
288
92
21
48
45
333
78
89
244
Shoe machine operators
7
3
4
2
28
2
0
5
71
1
4
Pressing machine operators
81
38
42
27
33
15
12
54
66
25
29
Laundering & dry cleaning machine
operators
214
82
132
92
42
44
48
122
57
38
84
Miscellaneous textile machine operators
48
18
30
28
58
9
18
20
41
9
10
2091
694
1399
704
33
306
397
1391
66
162
996
Occupation
Total
Total U.S. Economy
135208
% Textile Industry of U.S. Economy
1.5
Table 3. Median hourly earnings of the largest occupations in textile,
textile product, and apparel manufacturing, May 2004
Occupation
First-line supervisors/managers of
production and operating workers
Textile mills
Textile
product mills
Apparel
Manufacturing
All
industries
$19.35
$18.49
$15.23
$21.51
Textile knitting and weaving machine
setters, operators, and tenders
11.91
11.77
9.68
11.48
Inspectors, testers, sorters,
samplers, and weighers
10.87
10.50
8.62
13.66
Textile bleaching and dyeing machine
operators and tenders
10.80
10.59
9.82
10.56
Textile winding, twisting, and
drawing out machine setters,
operators, and tenders
10.54
11.74
9.55
10.87
Team assemblers
10.40
11.45
9.07
11.42
Laborers and freight, stock, and
material movers, hand
10.09
9.22
8.60
9.67
Helpers--Production workers
9.83
9.30
8.00
9.70
Sewing machine operators
9.35
9.08
8.08
8.61
Packers and packagers, hand
9.30
8.55
8.46
8.25
Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Textile, Textile Product, and Apparel Manufacturing.” U.S. Department of Labor. 20 April 2006.
<http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg/cgs015.htm#earnings>.
Not so hypothetical questions:
• If you could buy cute clothes made in the U.S. that
were ethically sound, with sewing machine
operators receiving $12.50/hour, along with job
security, health care, an ESL program, massage
therapists and paid days off, would you do it?
• Is the value of your clothes worth more than the
basic needs of another human being?
Humanity needs four basic things
to survive…
FOOD
and
SHELTER
…
CLOTHES
and
SEX
What does SEX have to do with poor women
locked into buildings with no ventilation and
receiving below minimum wage??
• Everything! American Apparel, the current
standard for a successful, sweatshop-free
apparel manufacturer, still uses women’s
bodies to make a buck. While their female
factory employees are receiving
exceptional benefits compared to other
women internationally, American Apparel
cannot sell ethical without selling sexual.
Here are the women who work for American Apparel
So much for freedom on International Women’s Day
Ironically enough…
“The first IWD was observed on 28 February
1909 in the United States following a declaration
by the Socialist Party of America. Among other
relevant historic events, it commemorates the
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, where over 140
women lost their lives. The idea of having an
international women's day was first put forward
at the turn of the 20th century amid rapid world
industrialization and economic expansion that
led to protests over working conditions. Women
from clothing and textile factories staged one
such protest on 8 March 1857 in New York City.
The garment workers were protesting what they
saw as very poor working conditions and low
wages. The protesters were attacked and
dispersed by police. These women established
their first labor union in the same month two
years later.”*
*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Women%27s_Day
And here are the women that work
for American Apparel
How old is this girl? 12?
Valeria
Valeria models some of
our bathing suits while at
our company apartment
in Montreal.
Is she selling clothes, children’s
Sheily – Mexico City Retail Employee furniture or sex?
Mia — A retail employee in New York, Mia was photographed at our
apartment there wearing the Lamé with our leggings.
Sona A student of forensics, Sona also knits sweaters that
she sells to retailers in New York.
Who is that guy?
Bibliography
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Model photos from:
American Apparel. “Gallery.” 26 April 2006.
<http://www.americanapparel.net/gallery/photocollections/models/index.html>.
All worker photos from:
American Apparel. “Meet Our Workers.”26 April 2006.
<http://www.americanapparel.net/mission/interviews/>.
American Apparel. “Recent and Provocative Ads.” 26 April 2006.
<http://www.americanapparel.net/presscenter/ads/>.
American Apparel. “What Does AA Do for Its Workers?” 26 April 2006
http://www.americanapparel.net/mission/workers.html
“Chicago Woolen Mills 1937 catalog.” Wikipedia. 27 April 2006.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Chicago_woolen_mill_suits1.jpg>.
“Fighting the Triangle Factory fire, New York City on March 25, 1911.” Wikipedia. 26
April 2006. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Triangle_Factory_fire_005.jpg>.
“Houses in Fishpool Street, St Albans, Hertfordshire, England.” 12 October 2003.
Wikipedia. 26 April 2006. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:20031012-002-houses-stalbans.jpg#file>.
“Image:Meatfoodgroup.jpg.” Wikipedia. 26 April 2006.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b7/Meatfoodgroup.jpg
Sprinkle, Annie. “Annie in the 70’s.” ANNIESPRINKLE.ORG. 27 April 2006.
<http://www.anniesprinkle.org/html/about/photos/1970s/index.php?currDir=>.