Nike And Asian Labour There has been much debate and controversy recently concerning Nike's Asian labour practices. This is a very complex issue and one that is a long way from being solved. It is very difficult to determine which side of this argument to defend, as both sides acknowledge the facts, yet put a completely different spin on them. Do you believe Nike's critics who say they're exploiting workers? Or, do you believe Nike when they say that they are giving workers in these countries wonderful opportunities to raise their standard of living? The consensus answer to this question by all sides seems to be that Nike is improving but still has a ways to go. Nike's Asian ties can be traced back to the birth of the company. The CEO, chairman of the board of directors, and co-founder, Phil Knight, wrote his masters thesis at Stanford University in the

1960's on the prospects for using Asian labor to produce goods cheaper and more effectively. In order to incorporate this plan in to Nike's business structure, a partnership was set up with a Japan based company called Tiger Sports. Tiger

Sports would manufacture shoes for Nike in Asia then shipped them to the United

Andy Young,' it was also a classic sham, marred not just by shoddy methodology but by frequent misrepresentations" (Glass). Young even admits that he and his company are not "labor practices experts" (GoodWorks, disclaimer) yet they were chosen to do this job. About a month ago a secret internal audit performed by Ernst and Young was leaked to press (Audit). In it was information about dangerous levels of carcinogens, as well as overtime abuse suffered by workers. This information directly contradicts Young's statement of "clean, well-lit, ventilated factories." This report makes it appear that Young's report was strictly for public relations and had no real impact on rectifying the situation, or bringing to light any of the issues that surrounded the situation. Recently, Nike commissioned a study by graduate students from the

GoodWorks International LLC (Young's company) for not using their own interpreters, not spending enough time in the factories, not consulting with "experts" on the issue, and using this report as a public relations ploy for his new company. He states, "But if the Nike report was 'classic

United States to countries such as Taiwan and Korea where their products could be manufactured at the same relatively low cost that Nike enjoyed through the

Tiger Sports partnership. Over the last five of years, however, the production numbers for these countries have been decreasing at an alarming rate due to the fact that their economies expanded at a very rapid pace. This, in turn, caused the cost of labour to increase dramatically, and therefore Nike could no longer produce their product as efficiently as before. In lieu of the rapid economic growth in the pacific rim, and the increased production cost, Nike has moved more into countries such as Vietnam and China

Some topics in this essay:
Indonesia China, Andy Young', Code Conduct, Tiger Sports, Nike's Asian, Conduct Code, Press Conference, Sheet Nike, Stanford University, LLC Young's, code conduct, tiger sports, asian labour, conclusion workers living, cost nike, workers management, factories contracted, minimum wage, nike commissioned, public relations, nike asian labour, workers living,