Retailer strategies – Who is responsible?

Where does my T-shirt come from?

In a recent conversation with a friend the following statement was made by her: until we realize that it is not right that we go into a shop in Denmark and get 3 t-shirts for DKK 100 (less than USD 20), no one in the production line of clothes will get better working conditions.

This I could only agree with, and I was somehow stunned that I had never really given that price any consideration before – an easy estimation of the production will tell me that this is ridiculous. For example; most t-shirts are produced from cotton – this is most likely grown either in the US (heavily subsidised) or on the African continent. Then it is transported from here to Asia for further production (if it is produced in Africa the raw cotton will have been transported somewhere else for processing before heading to Asia). In Asia, it will be treated, coloured, printed, sown and packed. After this it will be shipped across the world again for retail in Europe... Most retailers put a sales value of 250% on top of their cost price per item – now with this in mind; how is it possible to sell 3 t-shirts in Denmark for Dkk100? This amount equals the hourly minimum wage for anyone over the age of 18, so roughly an 18 year old will only have to work 2 hours to have the net payment (Denmark has an average of 50% tax on incomes) worth the same as the entire production line of 3 t-shirts. Logically this should not be possible. But it is.

The (recent) disaster in Bangladesh

Recently the concept of clothes production came to the surface again when the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh collapsed. The world should have been outraged – and granted there were some demonstrations in front of retailers in Britain (http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/27/us-bangladesh-building-retailers-idUSBRE93Q04H20130427) and articles around the disaster and the responsibility of the Bangladesh Government and the international companies with production in the Rana Plaza (http://www.forbes.com/sites/howardhusock/2013/05/02/the-bangladesh-fire-and-corporate-social-responsibility/ ; http://business.time.com/2013/05/02/bangladesh-factory-collapse-is-there-blood-on-your-shirt/), but has anything changed, will anything change - Most likely not. Bangladesh is the world’s second largest exporter of garments (China is the largest) and according to Reuters this is a business of “about $15.6 billion of ready-made garments each year - about 80 percent of its total exports. Sixty percent of Bangladesh's garment exports go to Europe; the United States takes 23 percent, and Canada takes 5 percent” (http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/27/us-bangladesh-building-retailers-idUSBRE93Q04H20130427).

If I was a government and 80% of my income depended on exports of clothes, how picky would I be about the safety of my workers, especially if 87% of my ‘customers’ didn’t care?  Would I tell these customers, ‘yes I know I depend entirely upon you, but I will not let you exploit this country and its people just so you can sell t-shirts for less than 5 USD each’. I hope I would, but if I have to be honest, I probably would not.

To blame or to take responsibility…?

Based on the above, the responsibility for disasters like the Rana Plaza lies with the companies, they should check their production line, and they should know what is going on from raw material to retail sale. Granted some do make an effort, but they then also easily claim that their production contractors sub contract, and how are they supposed to follow up on this? It is clear that they cannot if they do not set aside resources, but why should they do that when the consumers are no demanding that they do, and they have investors that demand a profit?

Private companies are exactly that - private companies. For many multinational companies the figure on the bottom line might matter more than the living conditions of those partaking in creating those figures – especially if they live in a such faraway place (from Europe and the US) as Bangladesh, China, Pakistan or Vietnam.  

Bryan Walsh of Time states that "International retailers can do more to advocate safer standards at textile factories that manufacture their wares, in Bangladesh and elsewhere. Customers can do their part by putting a little pressure on their favorite brands, though that would require placing as much value on the cost of a life as you might on the cost of a T-shirt (http://science.time.com/2013/04/29/fast-cheap-dead-shopping-and-the-bangladesh-factory-collapse/).

So the question is, is a life worth more than the cost of 3 t-shirts for DKK 100? I would think so, and yet does that stop me from buying clothes in a cheap store where I might suspect that the close are produced under similar conditions as in Rana Plaza? No, not always! And I will excuse myself with something like this; I don’t know for sure that these clothes are produced under such conditions, I have many expenses and a high cost of living in general so I do not have money for expensive clothes, and finally, just because a piece of clothe is expensive it is not necessarily produced under better conditions.

According to Reuters I am not alone in this – Mohini Raichura is also making decisions like that “Raichura, a 30-year-old London charity worker, was shopping Friday at Primark, a discount retailer owned by Associated British Foods, even though she knew that some of its products were made at the factory that collapsed earlier in the week.

"I go there because it's cheap. That's awful. It really makes me a bad person," Raichura said. "But you know, I work for a charity, I'm on a limited income, and I pay rent in London —that's how I justify it."” (http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/27/us-bangladesh-building-retailers-idUSBRE93Q04H20130427).

Mine and Mohinis excuses are all true, but do they actually excuse our consumer behavior? And where does that leave us? I know that being able to buy 3 t-shirts for 100 DKK should not be possible. Yet, when I am looking at them, I am not thinking, of this, I am thinking of how I need exactly 3 t-shirts, and how great it is that I can get them for such a low price, and then I might also be able to get something else...

So who is responsible for the repeated ‘Rana Plaza disasters’ that has happened and will continue to happen? The Governments overlooking regulations to increase their GDP, the multinationals that are looking out for their profits, or is it me and you?

In the end you and I are the ones putting on these clothes every day, we know, or at least we should know that our purchases affect peoples’ lives all over the world. So why is it not (also) our responsibility to make demands of the multinationals, who will then be forced to make demands from the Governments where they have their clothes produced? – The same clothes you and I put on every day. 

ranting - just because I can.

So the downside to an electronic soap dispenser is that when it is not working then there is not obvious manual way to access the soap... NOT smart in a non high class Ghanaian guest house – I am just saying... Anyway, that is actually not the topic for today’s ranting. Neither is the persistent mosquitoes who consequently ignore my several forms of repellent or the on again off again internet – even my modem!!! ARGH.  No today’s ranting is about something completly different...

To learn

Last week I was in a training to learn something, or at least test my knowledge, so that when I train someone else, I have a basis for what I am trying to convince others of (aside from just being right, because I am me)... 

This week I am in a training to be sure I have an understanding of the knowledge our partners will obtain during this training. Now, in theory that sounds like a great idea. In practise, not so much.

The facilitator is as such capable enough, has lots of practical knowledge etc. I just disagree with his methodology, his perception of certain concepts and their use - and he sounds more like a preacher than a facilitator. This latter element was actually commented on by a participant today: “if this was a congregation, you would be a very successful preacher” to which the answer was “that is just how I talk”...

anyway, back to the point, which is: I came here with an objective of gathering a learning - Which I am getting. So I should be content, but I am not. All day I have been fighting anger fits. Why? - because the facilitator is countering what I have been telling and will tell the partners in the future. He is using a different format to explain concepts and he uses examples that are not logical. When I address it he tells me “I have to cater for everyone, some are more advanced, but I have to include those less advanced also”.  -Yes you do, so for that exact reason you should be giving examples that are not controversial... I don't get it. Why give an example that will spare a debate when you are trying to teach someone about a concept and how to use it, especially if this is the first time they hear about it???

Problem

The real problem now arises within me. Instead of paying attention to the process of the day, I have been cross armed and sulky faced. Which, unfortunately, says quite a lot about me. when did I get so arrogant that I refused to believe that someone that has a different perception than me is just wrong?

I am not sure I like this me. Confident, yes, fine... but, I think I might have gone a bit over the top - and I think I might have let on (with a particulat tone of voice and the words - I completely disagree) that I did not entirely see eye to eye with him today... 

Solution

So I have made a decision - I need to learn to be more receptive, and put myself back in a 'learning' mode, as opposed to my current, 'I know better than you mode'. Now I just need to figure out how I do that... but how hard can it be...??? :/

Philosophical

Sometimes it takes the smallest thing to turn me in to a philosopher (or a wannabe one).

Since Sunday I have been, with a group of programme staff, retreating to the Savannah of Ghana. We are staying at a guest house just about in the middle of nowhere, with appx 5 minutes drive to a village that is the district capital of this nowhere. But it is a village worth noting though, as it is the home town of the current President of Ghana.

We are here because they did not have room for us at the spot where we are having our retreat conference. So we drive 30 minutes there in the morning and 30 minutes back in the evening. On the way to the conference spot (which by the way is in the Mole National Park – and has treated us with the sight of Elephants both Sunday and Monday) we pass through two larger villages (one being the above mentioned). The latter of these villages is the home of the oldest mosque in Ghana (this is just bonus info), it is also the village where you turn right to go towards the national park, where we are having our meeting (if you go straight you will pass the mystic stone, and eventually end in Sawla, where you can turn left and go towards Kumasi or right and go towards Wa (and yes those are your actual two options).

This village, home of the oldest mosque in Ghana, is called Larabanga. Now Larabanga has not much to offer, except room for thought, at least when you pass it in a 4x4. The village has appx a 1 km radius, and if it wasn’t for the fact that the road is quite bad, you would have gone through it in something like 2 minutes in a car. But the road is bad, so it takes you somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes to pass through.

When we pass here, and turn right, in the morning, we meet a large number of children – I am happy to say that the majority are in school uniform - and these children along with comments are what have spurred my philosophical tendency today. Actually it started yesterday where I thought, “well, at least here the things I go on about don’t really matter”. Today my colleague stated the following; “these people, they don’t care about these hectic Accra things. Fuel Prices, LPG (local produced gas (I think)) – the politicians can raise the prices all they want, it won’t affect them. Life stays the same”. A few moments later my other colleague was drawing our attention to the children walking without shoes, and the first colleague said “well it is priority”. Now this might sound strange, why wouldn’t someone spend 1 Ghana Cedi (50 cent) on slippers if you had the money – I would think that a priority. But apparently here it is not. My colleague explained that most people can afford it, except maybe that one old woman taking care of orphans (grandmother who is caring for grandkids, due to parents not around, or dead) they just don’t see the need.

This got me wondering. What does it matter? Who am I to project my priority on to people living in this village? My colleague emphasised this by stating, “these people don’t have fancy Accra ideas about fried rice, for them you shouldn’t go and bring that here” (potentially it should be explained that fried rice in this context is a foreign element, and thereby somewhat costly. Also this is usually made with some level of vegetable – which is not really in existence here).

My question to myself and you is – are the people living here poor? Or is life just that much more simple because the needs I (we) have created in life, don’t exist. What constitutes poverty? Granted monetary economy is not in abundance here. If you pay somewhere with a 20 Gh Cedi note (appx 10 USD), then it is difficult to get change unless you have been a big spender and used almost all. But is money the only value – and is it necessarily a value here?

If I had grown up here, and never left – would I think that my life here was not rich? Granted, I would potentially see all these fancy cars, and plenty white people, go to the National Park, and I would know there was a very different world where they came from. But would I imagine what it was like – and then translate that into me being poor?

With globalisation and mass communication media of course it is not possible to live in this simple equation, there will always be information reaching even the most remote areas about what life is like in another place. But until you have been, it is difficult to fathom (that I know for a fact, as I have gone through a recognition process like that several times).

Leaving the meeting today, my colleague got into the car and said “I could never take my family and live in the forest”. Which made me think – I could. Question is for how long? How long can you give up what you know, to be in a world so different, without access to things you find basic (like chocolate), when would the limit be reached?

Are we as humans not able to adapt to almost everything the minute we can make it our own? I think so, and I am basing it on something a friend said when we were staying in a bat infested Banda, in the middle of nowhere (another nowhere than the one I am in now) in a national park in Uganda. I asked her – how long do you think it would take someone from outside to get used to staying here like this. She answered: well if it was this specific person, she might never adapt fully, but you and I – 1 week!

One week - that is the time it will take me to get used. This brings me back to the question of; how long till I have had enough? Could I (or you), as a human being, leave a life behind to adapt to a new one on its terms and conditions, without trying to change it? And without the comfort of knowing – it is only for a limited period of time?

Climbing the dead.

I guess I have always know that it is not untill you are confronted with your doxa that you will recognise it - I mean that is the whole issue of it being a doxa...

I have always know that I am more traditional than progressive, I like history and the idea of culture. That doesn't mean that I believe that culture is static and cannot develop, it just means that I treasure it, and I believe in the values related to my culture.This also means that I hve made this an active decision - I ahve reflected on my culture and - I thought - on my doxa.

IHowever today I had a confrontation with something that I had not considered. In Ghana you walk on graves - at least we did today.

Death a stranger to me.

I have rarely been confronted with death in my life - for which I am very grateful. However recently a colleague and friend lost a parent. I have followed the process of the preparation for the funeral from the sidelines - asked a lot of question in my quest to understand it.

Funerals are common in Ghana - I don't think a saturday in my time here has passed without I have come accross one. I have once before attended a funeral in Ghana - but this was a Liberian funeral and broke with procedures as Ora (who died) was not buried but transpported back to Liberia.

Today was the culmination of my colleagues preparation - the funeral took placce. As it seems to be custom in this country everyone who had any sort of relation to the berieved were invited. The obiturary was a A3 poster with all information you would want; who, where, when etc.
I went with colleagues from work.

The ceremoney took place in a catholic Church so in many ways that was familiar - being a protestant and all - then the first thing that is different presented itself. Churches and cemetaries in Ghana are not linked. They seem to be completly seperate entities, so we drove accross town from the church to the burial grounds.

Here we waited in line for a bit - there was a group of people leaving the site as we arrived. When we eneterd we could only walk up to around 50 m before the gravesite on road. For the last part of the journey we climbed the graves.

It should be mentioned that graves in Ghana are quite different from those in DK. Here they are build in rocks and cement  and they are mostly above ground.
this means that the graveyeard resembles a construction site a little. you will see cement bags, shovels and hacks lying next to graves being constructed or closed off. unfortunately cleaning up and maintenance is not of highest priority, so empty bags are lying spread here and there between the graves.

My doxa confronted.

When thinking back on visitin graves in Denmark, I realise I have always been causious not to setep outside the paths - I was horrified of the thought of stepping on the face of a dead personn.

Today I had to overcome. The cemetary in Osu, is so crowded that you have some graves with less thatn 10 com in between others there is maybe 50 cm. so to get to the middel where the space might be, you will at points have to step up on the graves. so I did. I have stepped on a grave -  actually several.

This was a horrifying experience. nothing less. I am imagining it is something like a committed vegan all of the sudden realizing she is chewing meat. My heart started pounding, and I have never before said so many "I am sorry's"  in such a short time.

I thought this would then be over, I had overcome and reached the place of the grave - at this time happily forgetting that I had to go back again... At the grave however, since we were many people and the graves were many and as mentioned very close. People were standing on the graves, walking on them, jumpng between them - ON THEM. I dcided that I am not Kant - ther eis no imperiative, and that we all do different things and think differently of it. I was happy with this, just untill I saw a woman standing on a grave up against the headstone, to be able to see..

At this time one of the workers sitting on a headstone a little away answers his phone and speaks VERY LOUDLY for quite some time, this while the 'ceremon' was going on and the casket was being lowered. I have no words - after this two other poeple (participants in the funeral) answered their phones and had conversations... Still no words - only thoughts of apology.

Don't step on me when I am dead.

My learning of the day? I have a very specific perception of what is right and wrong behaviour in regards to a funeral and the treatment of graves...
So when I some day in the future am confronted with death again - potentially my own. Burn me! Pease let no one step on my head - even if I am dead.