Secrets, Lies and Sweatshops

US multinational companies that rely on factories overseas often tout how their strict labor rules protect human rights. For example, Wal-Mart stops doing business with factories in China after four warnings on wage or scheduling violations. But factories under contract with multinationals have learned how to circumvent the regulations by hiring coaching firms that fake employee payroll records and provide scripts for answering questions from auditors. Strict compliance on labor codes increases prices, explains one factory manager in "BusinessWeek" article, and another manager estimates that only a small fraction of Chinese factories comply with wage rules or time limitations, in an country where 100-hour workweeks are not rare. “Ultimately, the economics of global outsourcing may trump any system of oversight that Western companies attempt,” concludes the article in "BusinessWeek." Perhaps no job is really secure in a world where bargains take priority over human rights. – YaleGlobal