To think Beckham paying children 13p an hour to make his clothes is disgraceful

[jdoe8]

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4215728/Beckham-s-H-M-fashion-range-child-labour-shame.html

"David: Beckham pledged to devote his life to charity helping poor children of the world, but the firm selling his clothes used child labour paid 13p an hour"

Wow that is low IMO. I know the beckhams are admired by most on MN for being amazing, but seriously..

[LadyPenelopeCantDance]

You do realise this happens all over the world? Beckham isn't solely responsible, it is H&M who are choosing the manufacturers of these clothes and using chil labour. When you convert the local currency they are paid to 13p, of course it will sound awful, but people will still buy cheap, unethical clothing.

Sadly, the alternative is the kids do not work and they and their families go hungry.

[jdoe8]

That's not the only alternative. How about people pay a few extra pennies per cheap item and this doubles the wages of the adults that make it.

Child labour should be illegal, they should be at school.

[AllTheWittyNamesAreGone]

Why single out Beckham?

[RubyWinterstorm]

Why not single him out?

It raises awareness

[tabulahrasa]

I stopped reading it after it said the child they mentioned was hidden by the factory during inspections....

[cowgirlsareforever]

I think Beckham's UNICEF role is enough to justify singling him out on this issue.

[MrsDustyBusty]

I think it's kind of obscene to license your name to sell clothes but divest yourself of any responsibility for the manufacture. I think it's a huge problem, the extent to which we accept people shrugging off their social responsibility. If it was up to me, tax cheats, people who don't do due diligence for their licensing deals etc could be liable for prosecution.

[fishonabicycle]

It's because all of us here in the UK want to buy cheap clothes!

[BewtySkoolDropowt]

Did you read the article?

The child that was speaking to them said she was told to hide when the inspectors came. It sounds like H&M are not to blame and very probably didn't know, so it is incredibly unlikely that Beckham did (and they dont even say it's where his line was produced, just that H&M sell his line).

Yes, it's awful. It shouldn't happen. But the contractor is making sure it is not seen to be happening. That's not Beckham's fault!

[VanillaSugar]

What has happened that the Daily Fail wants to destroy David Beckham all of a sudden?

[LittleBearPad]

If children were told to hide from inspectors how were H&M meant to know?

[LittleBearPad]

It's the emails. They scent blood and can't resist.

[NoArmaniNoPunani]

I think it's worse that he's only doing the UNICEF work so he can get a knighthood. Unappreciative cunts eh.

[SouthWindsWesterly]

Ever since the Beckham email leaks/blackmail came out, the media have been gunning for other stories surrounding the Beckhams. I bet if they dug around other celebrities clothing lines or endorsements, other clay feet will also be found but right now, DB is being targeted.

Surely the problem is that we want disposable and cheap clothing and this is how the factories make their money?

[TheJunctionBaby]

What NoArmani said

[MrsDustyBusty]

If children were told to hide from inspectors how were H&M meant to know?

Good old plausible deniability.

[LaurieMarlow]

My understanding is that manufacturing is a murky, complicated world and orders are taken by independent agents who farm them out to various plants. Big brands don't actually have a clue who's making their orders and the agents are motivated to keep it like that.

Single Beckham out if you like, but every single person in the game is in the same position and he is pretty powerless to change the mechanics of a such a big industry.

[LadyPenelopeCantDance]

Whilst there is demand for cheap clothing - H&M selling tshirts for £4 etc. then this will continue.

[SabineUndine]

OP do you only buy clothes from companies you are sure don't exploit children - or adults for that matter? Or do you make your own? If you don't, you're complicit in the exploitation and shouldn't be criticising Beckham.

[abbsisspartacus]

How much does 13p translate to in local currency? Is it a living wage?

[londonrach]

All clothes are made that way. Why single out beckhams brand. Not saying its right but whats 13p to that childs family compared to 0p. Also whats the normal wage in that country.

[RortyCrankle]

It's absurd to target one person - so many companies do this. And it's fine to throw the first stone if you have never bought an item of clothing made by sweat labour for pennies, by children or otherwise.

[MissDallas]

Then stop moaning about the price of clothes, everyone! Cheap clothes are cheap for a reason.

[EZA15]

For those saying pay more wages. It doesn't / won't matter how much H & M pay, ultimately, the bosses at these factories won't pay the workers more. They'll say that they're not getting the money etc.

[Megatherium]

I strongly get the impression that the Mail is making a big deal of this type of story to take the focus off Trump. It's extraordinary that they tend to bury Trump's numerous gaffes way down the page whilst making headline news out of Beckham's ancient emails.