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American Apparel Industry Research Paper

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THE VALUE OF A SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE AMERICAN APPAREL INDUSTRY
Tiara C. Hudson

The social responsibility of the American apparel industry covers responsible practices related to human rights, labor standards, and environmental sustainability. Some of the advantages of being socially responsible is higher revenue, customer loyalty, safe and happy laborers, and an overall healthy environment. Research conducted by Price Waterhouse Coopers found out after researching 1,000 retail companies 79 percent said that corporate social responsibility (CSR) was vital to the profitability and value of their company. Throughout the paper there will be a discussion of the advantages of being a socially responsible company. As well as the importance of …show more content…

Emphasis on elimination of waste and improvement of quality through continuous process improvement. American retailers that conduct normal practice in global supply chain use contract manufacturers in other countries that offer the lowest price while meeting minimal quality and delivery standards. There is frequent switching of suppliers to take advantage of lower cost opportunities. However there is no loyalty to the supplier or by the supplier to the customer. Many of these suppliers have sweatshop conditions including child labor, low wages, unhealthy and unsafe working conditions. In addition, retailers abstain from taking responsibility for the action of the suppliers they use that have poor quality working conditions.
In 1948 the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was approved by the United Nations and an international minimum standard for protection of individual basic rights and freedoms. It covers four major categories: equality, life and security, personal freedom, and economic, social and cultural …show more content…

In the 1990s, Nike took a defensive position when confronted with the various labor, environmental, and occupation health problems found at their suppliers. Workers at these factories were not Nike employees, and thus Nike felt no responsibility toward them. In 1992, Nike formulated their Code of Conduct for is suppliers that required them to observe some basic labor, environmental, and health and safety standards. Nike required their footwear suppliers to adopt the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards for indoor air quality. They also conducted training sessions with its suppliers as well as assembling a compliance staff that is based in 21 countries to monitor their

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