Five former Gucci-employees publicly release an open letter claiming that the company was a “sweatshop”, alleging abusive management, over 12 hour daily shifts, at times staying until 2-3:00 am, forced overtime, among other grievances.
Incident Tag: Forced Overtime
Based on article 8(3)(a) of the international Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ―no one shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labor‖.
According to article 2(1) of the Forced Labor Convention of 1930, ―the term forced or compulsory labor shall mean all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.‖
Additionally, based on Article 13(1) ―The normal working hours of any person from whom forced or compulsory labor is exacted shall be the same as those prevailing in the case of voluntary labor, and the hours worked in excess of the normal working hours shall be remunerated at the rates prevailing in the case of overtime for voluntary labor.‖
China Labor Watch – 20/11/2015
“A contracted toy company producing for McDonald’s employed 400 child workers, who were required to work 16 hours per day and paid 1.5 yuan per hour. The youngest worker was only 14 years old.”
Kalla Fakta: Bakom fabriksgrindarna (Behind the Factory Gates | With English subtitles) – TV4
Documentary investigates low wages, excessive work hours and other labor violations in Dell supply chain factories.
Servants of servers: Forced student labor and rights abuses in Chinese factory that manufactures servers for Dell, HP, and Lenovo (involuntary labor tag?)
Tens of thousands of Chinese students are forced to work as interns in the assembly lines of IT factories. Many of them cannot quit or they will not graduate.
European garment workers face forced overtime and poverty wages (Poland)
“Excessively low wages, health hazards, poor legal protection in case of illness and the fact that the rights to holiday leave are rarely exercised.”
Another Fire in Bangladesh: Seven Women Killed at Smart Fashion, Saturday Jan 26
7 women killed in factory fire, including 3 children.
Violation of the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement: Human Trafficking Returns to Jordan
Workers stripped of their passports which constitutes human trafficking crime. “Workers are forced to toil 15 to 16 hours a day, 7 days/week” earning as much as 53 cents/hour.
Wal-Mart and Disney Toys from Hell
Work hours reaching 15,5 hours not including the two meal breaks, 6 ½ hours of overtime daily, 7 days/week at peak seasons, and Lack of fire protection. “It’s very unsafe. If there was an emergency, people could not get out!”
Gap and Old Navy in Bangladesh: cheating the poorest workers in the world
14- to – 23 hour shifts, 7 days/week, reaching to massive 210 hours of overtime, even for pregnant women; extreme work hours; beatings; humiliation; death threats; starvation wages (20 to 24 cents per hour); workers visibly sick, exhausted and dazed.
Exhaustion Has No Limit at Apple Supplier in China
Incidents of over 100 security guards harassing and beatings at factory (15,000 workers). Workers toil for 64 to 72 hours/week; with low wages; workers are numb and exhausted. “We are just machines” – Zhen Ding Tech worker