What is a sweatshop?

A sweatshop is any workplace in which workers are subject to extreme exploitation. This "extreme exploitation" includes no benefits, unacceptable working conditions, and a salary under living wage. The difference between minimum wage and living wage is that living wage is the amount of money needed for basic, everyday needs, including food, shelter and healthcare. A typical sweatshop employee usually works around 60-80 hours a week which tranlates to around 10 hours a day, not including overtime hours. 



These workers aren't just adults, they can also be children, underage children. Some sweatshops have child workers as young as five years old working up to 10 hours a day and living in horrible conditions. Not only is this against the law but it's simply inhumane. The reason these children are hired is because it is less likely for them to complain about the poor conditions and because they work for less money, since they are so young.



Another group of people being faced with the social injustice problem of working in a sweatshop is women. Not only are women taken advantage sexually because of their gender, but they are treated inferior compared to men.  About 85% of all sweatshop workers are young women, ranging in ages 15-25. At some of the most brutal sweatshops, there are rules that say if a women is pregnant or refuses to take birth control, which is forced upon them, they have a big chance of being fired.

​​Sweatshops are not only found in foreign countries, there are several sweatshops, just as bad as those overseas, right here in the United States. Sweatshops are usually found in states with bigger populations including New York, Texas, and California. These aren't the only states where sweatshops are found; just the states with the greatest number of sweatshops. 



It has been found that 67% of all Los Angeles garment factories and 63% of all New York garment factories have violated several minimum wage and overtime (meaning extra hours) laws. Also, 98% of all Los Angeles garment factories have violated workplace health and safety standards. This has been found due to the fact that these factories have blocked fire exits, have unsanitary bathrooms, and have poor ventilation. Because these factories have broken those laws and haven't followed those guidelines, countless numbers of workers have been injured and several have even been killed. Of these factories in Los Angeles, over 50% are considered sweatshops. All this just shows that severe and brutal actions are happening right here, in our country, and most people are unaware of it.