Workers in the garment industry — mainly in Los Angeles — said the conditions they endure are akin to overseas sweatshops.
An estimated 85% of garment businesses in Los Angeles violated labor laws regarding pay, according to an investigation by the Department of Labor. Many of them produce what is referred to as “fast fashion” — hastily sewn pieces that mirror top brands.
With three decades of experience as a seamster, Francis Tzul has seen terrible conditions. He’s worked in shops in Guatemala, Mexico, and the U.S.
“There is some kind of a modern slavery going on the sweatshops,” Francis Tzul told CBS News in an interview. “They paid us like 5 cents, 6 cents for a piece.”
Workers in the garment district are paid on a “piece rate,” earning money for each piece they sew. The average worker collected between $2.68 and $5.85 an hour last year, according to the Garment Worker Center.
“At those low rates, they can never reach the minimum wage. It’s just it’s impossible. Even the most seasoned, skilled workers cannot sew fast enough,” Nuncio said.
Seamsters would need to sew at least 300 pieces per hour to collect the minimum $15 an hour mandated in Los Angeles.
“If you ask for a pay raise, they say ‘If you want to work, then work. If not, there’s the door,’” said a worker who only identified herself as Virgilda to CBS, fearing the factory would fire her. She said, after 20 years, she still makes less than $5 an hour.
Another employee told the news outlet she makes $200 a week.
Tzul and other garment industry employees are lobbying California legislators to hold brands that rely on cheap factories responsible for ensuring the conditions of the places they contract with meet state and federal standards.
“We have to make sure that they are fully responsible for what the workers who produce their garments are getting paid,” said bill sponsor Calif. Sen. Maria Elena Durazo.
California’s Chamber of Commerce opposes the bill, claiming it would destroy jobs.
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