I just realized the possibility that my entire wardrobe could have been made by the same kid somewhere in the Phillippines. But then I thought to myself...is child labour really that bad?

Think about it, without those jobs at Nike, Abercrombie & Fitch or the Gap they would have NO money at all. Twelve cents a day might seem pretty barbaric to us, but twelve US cents can go pretty far in a country that is a lot less fortunate that us. If you ask me, some money is better than no money at all.

Also, if these children were unemployed they would have nothing to do. They would most likely get involved in crime or drug production, or just stay at home and die of starvation or whatever disease happens to be going around. If nothing else, these jobs occupy the kids and give them something to do during the day.

Thirdly, think of the consequences if Nike or these other companies started manufacturing their products in North America or decided to pay the children in these countries 6 or 7 bucks/hour. The prices of their products would increase dramatically in order to keep profits up (We can't fault a company for trying to turn a profit, right?). Personally, I think $80 is pretty steep for a nice pair of jeans, I wouldn't want to be paying $180.

So overall, it seems that while the situation could be better for these children, it is better than the alternative. I've talked to a few people about this and some of the tend to agree. Any input?