The pent up frustration of workers in Bangladesh textile factories finally reached the boiling point. The costs of living have been rising and the workers' salaries have remained the same. Unfortunately, the workers' repeated demonstrations finally turned violent.
A BBC World report on cable television interviewed a factory manager who said that bargain pricing on the racks in America and Europe were putting on the pressure which brought about the situation in Bangladesh. I am just guessing, but that sure seems like a very intelligent manipulation of media to difuse the problem.
If the factories raised the salaries of workers, sure that would increase the price of the product. Then, American and European stores would be more careful about their bargain pricing. And if clothes cost a few more dollars on the rack, do you think your average citizen in any developed country would start throwing rocks at the clerk and setting fire to cars in the parking lot?
I am guessing not. Let's not be fooled: Western clothing companies know their customers can and will pay more, and though they would obviously prefer to keep prices down, they know minor price adjustments would probably go through with little trouble from customers.
It is always easier to toss the blame on the other guy, but what the factory manager said (and BBC supported) sure seemed more polished than just tossing the blame. Remember this guy is not speaking to the Dhaka local news, this is BBC, viewed around the world, viewed by the folks buying the end product.
This is an audience which is increasingly sensitive to the working conditions of the people who make the products bought on the shelf. Lawsuits and investigations fly every which way and the pressure is on Western companies to watch working conditions their factories located in developing countries like Bangladesh and China.
Have we missed the hole in logic, though? Is this factory manager playing on our sentiments so we are blinded to the profitable situation for himself and his collegues? It is hard to say. Companies in the West may well be putting on huge pressure to keep prices low.
However, why were the textile workers targeting factories during the riots? Possibly, the workers lack the global business context in which to interpret what is going on and thus falsely blame the local factories. Then again, they may understand the situation better than we.
I am no Bangladesh expert, but if this were China, I would take a second look at the situation before jumping to conclusions of who is to blame.
