In the deadly Bangladesh fire that has killed at least 120 workers, Wal-Mart and other large companies were certainly aware of the conditions.
One hundred twenty lives lost for — what? GREED! Over one hundred lives lost so that Walmart, Sears and even P. Diddy can make more money. Their families will mourn the death of their loved ones and lose the pittance they depended on for this slave labor.
WATCH: The ABC News report .
Now it seems that Walmart has stated that the factory was no longer authorized to produce merchandise for them. In a report from CNN they’ve said: “A supplier subcontracted work to this factory without authorization and in direct violation of our policies. Today, we have terminated the relationship with that supplier,” Wal-Mart said Monday.
Time will tell IF this is entirely true or not.
The International Labor Rights Group has also asked for support from the world community to look into the cause of the fire. Major brands such as Sears, Wal-Mart, Dickies and others who are well-known here in America, as well as other popular brands worldwide, were manufactured there.
What have we come to in this world when the lives of these people are so insignificant that they do not call for adequate protection from dying in a fire while at work? How can Walmart and other mega-rich U.S. corporations dare to look the other way regarding the hundreds who have died worldwide in factory accidents that produce their goods? Where is the sense of outrage in the awful conditions in which some of these workers live?
Oh – wait – silly me, I forgot! These people are even more expendable than the U.S. workers employees in the stores!
Investigations into this fire need to be totally transparent. It is Wal-Mart’s responsibility as purchaser of goods from factories like this to demand safe working conditions for these factory workers.
I’m sure that large companies like Wal-Mart can afford to have more direct oversight in making sure its suppliers provide safe conditions for workers. They spend an absurd amount of money each year spying on their own workers; why not some undercover spies for factories to make sure this doesn’t happen again? Unannounced visits would be a good thing to see exactly how the employees of these factories are being treated.
Of course, remembering how they treat their U.S. employees, it may be too much of a stretch to imagine them working with international workers’ rights organizations ~or~ to think that they even care!
The sad thing is that Wal-Mart and other retailers have been outsourcing their products for years in places like Bangladesh and China to evade U.S. labor laws and worker protections. This is one more example of the cold heart of this corporation. “Save Money, Live Better” means that the Walmart executives can live better.
It’s just another reason to boycott Wal-Mart! In fact — let’s ALL try to buy more american-made goods!
A Little Knowledge Is A Dangerous Thing! 
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