United States Against Sweatshops

United States Against Sweatshops (USAS) is a student body in the US which acts against organisations outsourcing work to developing nations to cut costs. Its motive is to discourage such organisations that outsource to companies that exploit employees by making them work overtime without pay, and, in general, offer unhygenic and egregious working conditions.

I think when we started off with this outsourcing thing it was a sweet frisky little monkey that obediently complied with norms. Sweatshop (such as the ones I worked in) had good cafeteria, free food, game rooms, etc. But gradually as the monkey developed into a gorilla these were withdrawn. "We no longer are a monkey but a gorilla," was the refrain. The dirty word was - profits at whatever costs. No longer are there cafeterias, free food, games, etc. It's work, work, work, all the time and forget even free tea. Hm. An outsourcer with whom I worked used to charge us for the tea we drank.

So, if you know any employer that exploits its workers, you know who to get in touch with.

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