Style Fix

Gap Kids is the hot topic of legal buzz of the day. British newspaper The Observer set out on an investigation of child labor in an India-based supplier for the retail giant’s European and United States stores.

Why the newspaper was able to discover this, and Gap, Inc. was not … baffles me, but the important part is that child labor was found to be used at this factory, and actions are being set forth to stop it.

Kids as young as 10 years old were creating clothes on a daily basis, including currently working to produce blouses in time for Christmas.

The Observer reported their findings on Sunday, October 28, and the Gap responded by withdrawing all potentially tainted items from sales floor and shipments, beginning their own investigation, and meeting with all of their suppliers to review laws and ethical codes.

Child labor alone disgusts many - and rightfully should. But the conditions found were not just those of kids working to earn money to feed their families. It was a sweatshop, make no mistake.

According to the Observer, the child workers described long hours of unpaid work, threats, and beatings. The children were hand-embroidering and beading. They were bought from their parents and taken several miles away into the city of New Delhi. They were working off the cost paid to their parents rather than receiving any pay. They were often going without food for more than 24 hours.

Many of you may not shop at Gap affiliations anyway, finding it too popular/preppy/corporate/fill-in-the-blank. But if you do, you should note that, according to Gap’s official statement released Sunday October 28, this was not a regular supplier. Gap would like to note that the Christmas blouse mentioned above was the only item that this subcontracted factory was producing. Additionally, the actual company that Gap was in direct contract with, allegedly further subcontracted the work out to an unauthorized company without Gap’s consent or knowledge.

Gap’s spokespeople made numerous statements, as I am sure you can imagine. They are being very political, making it near impossible to read into the situation. We will just have to wait and see what happens next … and we should all surely keep these children in our thoughts and prayers, especially as the Thanksgiving season approaches and we remember all that we have.

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