to be annoyed at cheap uniform ads

[greenfanta]

workers in bangladesh are protesting about wages that they can't even live on. they want a 300% wage rise so they can survive, but the govt will only allow 80% (is it me or are these %s mental!)yet the supermarkets are bragging about school shirts for £2. how LITTLE are they paying these people??! and since when do we expect to only pay £2? IS IT ME OR IS IT IMMORAL TO EXPLOIT WORKERS IN THE EAST?

I think the best way of putting pressure on retailers to operate in an ethical way is not necessarily to boycott them/their cheap clothes, but to bombard them with letters/emails/protests etc saying what we as consumers expect from them.

And as has already been said on the thread, you don't know if by spending more money in a different shop you are ensuring better wages for the people who have made the clothes (unless you do some serious research).

If the whole of MN emailed the CEO of Asda demanding that they operate in a more ethical way I bet he'd sit up and listen.

sorry, yes, i meant scottishmummy, sorry for confusion!!

i think someone further down made the really good point that uniform (and clothes in general) used to cost more, which is absurd when you thinki about it

but they used to make them last.

so a polo shirt with paint on it wouldn't just get chucked in the wash and then binned if the paint didn;t come out
it would have been soaked properly, treated with some sort of stain remover and then washed.
it's amazing what you can get out of clothes if you really try

likewise, trousers with holes in the knee would be patched, but these days it's easier to just go out and buy a new pair.. which probably ends up costing more!

we like in such a "disposable" society now. it's so incredibly wasteful, it makes me quite sad.
ds1 is the only kid at his school i have ever seen with patched knees on his trousers lol, but i know for a fact he isn't the only one to come home with holes at the knees.

i do try and buy fairtrade, but i don't think even that guarantees that it isn't made in sweatshops does it? it applies only to the fabric?
tesco sell 100% cotton fairtrade school trousers. for £5. someone is losing out somewhere and you can bet your bottom dollar it isn't tesco. I have no doubt that the cotton is fairtrade.... which leaves the manufacturers...

I think fairtrade can refer to the fabric or the clothes manufacture or both, but it's generally almost impossible hard to find out which.

are there any websites that sell clothes that are only produced in the uk??

Well yes TIY true about durability etc

But if your child is the only one with patches- ell I wouldn;t do that to him to make a point for me, IYSWIM.

Not at this age anyway- when they ahd pirates day at Nursery I sent him in a costume graffiti'd up Pirates For Justic, PCND (Pirate's CND< with loggo) and Pirates Against The Plank

But not now, not at 9 and 10. Would be so unfair. I'll wear old and broken clothes myself rather than do teh disposable route, but that's my decision for myself.

I bin two polo shirts a week for ds3 and I have tried everything but he is a special case and I figure that's part what we get DLA for, the extra cost of his clothes. But we are trying M&S stain protected fair trrade this term.

but i'm not doing it to make a point. I am doing it because I want him to have decent cotton trousers.
i wouldn't wear nylon/polyester trousers all day every day, and i wouldn't expect him too either. not to mention the teflon

no-one has ever said anything about his trousers being patched so they must not have noticed. and if they do i'll be having stern words.

They'd notice where we are, sadly- boys already bully targets (which may colour my views obviously)

The Child labour issue is a tricky one too, the children often are major financial support to their family, without it they can even end up homeless.

Many countries and companies that employ children are making schools in the factories, so that they get an education as well as employment.

I'd love to know who they supply to though.

i object to low income parents being told to shop ebay,2nd hand,car boot sale to stretch their money.as if thats all they are fit for.when there are new affordable clothes available in asda that are affordable.

some of you live in la la land where charity shops and ebay are bulging with great quality clothes at pennies just in right sizes and exactly when needed.

where i live charity shops are not bargaintastic, and to an extent why should they,they need to maximise their profits too

if one choses 2nd hand,ebay etc then fair enough,but this assumption the poor shouldn't buy asda because it irks someone else conscience,is just wrong

low income families may need to chose asda

"as if that's all they are fit for"

again... what is WRONG with second hand clothing?
i presume from that then you never pass things down from one child to the next? because that would be second hand?

sorry, but if you can't afford new, you buy second hand
this is the problem exactly. this sense of entitlement "i MUST have new things, I have a RIGHT to buy stuff even if i can't afford it"

there is nothing wrong with second hand clothes.

you would rather buy a shitty piece of uniform just beucase it's new, than have a decent piece that is second hand?

there is something seriously wrong with this country

School uniforms are bloody cheap, but I agree they are too cheap. It makes you really think about who's making them. We can afford to pay a little bit more, to be honest. Even if you're bloody skint I would n't mind paying a bit more for the shirts etc. But would that get to the workers???? Mmmmm, doubt it.

nothing wrong with 2nd hand at all,but if not much price diff id buy new.i wouldnt clothe my kids 2nd hand to prove some right on point.if it was viable financial choice to buy 2nd hand-fair do.but if pretty much same price yes id buy asda

I bought asda and marks n sparks in that 3 for 2 sale.

Coupla hand me down jumpers with logo from her cousin

Shoes from shoe fayre

Cheap as chips and I'm sure they'll last long enough before she outgrows them

I would think that 2nd hand school uniforms would have holes in them and broken zips and stuff....from wear and tear. I'm not a clothes snob have been living in pass on clothes from clothes bags for a few years now myself whilst my daughter has lovely new clothes!!!! Skint but happily recycling!

Still I find it uncomfortable to think workers are being shafted out of a better wage because of the cheap prices.

thisisyesterday So are only quality ethically produced school uniforms donated to charity shops? Or are you advocating that those watching the pennies spend 3 quid on a second hand Cherokee shirt which is 4 sizes too big anyway?

LOL yes charity shops packed full of fairtrade,made in commune by artisans school clothes.all exactly in the required size, colour,quantity.gently worn by levitating children who dont get scuffed

no, clearly i am not saying that. and i don't think that anyone on here is stupid enough to think that either.
so i'll assume you're just looking for an argument

re-using uniform is better than buying MORE from sweatshops, even if the one you are buying originated from oen

you may well find you can get better quality uniform second hand for a similar price.

any questions?

The trouble is if you live in an area where the majority of people buy ASDA clothes they are only good for 3 months wear usually, so if they make it to a charity shop then they are a bit scruffy by then.
And then there's the stigma, boho chic hasn't reached many places. My brother will earn £200 in a week and then spend £50 on shoes for his 1 year old, like the baby knows he's wearing timberlands, then go without himself but the baby looks great, like some dress up doll. I assume that only gets worse as they get older.

so you replace an asda uniform every 3 months?
it must surely work out as expensive as buying a better quality one??

tiy,numerous posters have pointed out to yopu that charity shops may
only have asda etc any way
not have size required
be damaged with holes
....any questions

your premise assumes good quality,right size school clothes on demand on charity shops

No my children wear M&S when they can, we have a school uniform shop we have to go to. My goodness we pass that down amongst ourselves when a pinafore is £45 for a three year old.
But on the occasions I've bought Asda clothes for them or me it's not lasted more than a dozen washes before it's tatty looking, out of shape, hems down etc.

charity shops which have the right uniform in the right size?
clothes from which paint/pen comes out if you try hard enough?

PMSL.

sancti lo at stainless t shirts.

My ds 5.11 has 2 'school logoed' polos which I bought him in year r and he's about to have them for year 2 and the new 1 I've bought. He's had the supermarket 2 for £2.50 ones as well but they stain and don't wash out so have already decided to buy more expensive (albiet not harrods) polos this year. Gonna try sanctis m&s ones noew.

well i just had a search on ebay for school shirts

1,500 results.

i've got all manner of paint/pen/whiteboard marker out of ds's shirts

i really don't think stain removal is that difficult.
but if you prefer to keep buying more stuff that's your look out i guess

if i couldn't afford school uniform i would:

ask the school if they sell second-hand
ask around to see if any other parents knew anyone passing any on
look on ebay
look in charity shops