It has been a few months since I have written anything down for this blog. I can blame a whole slew of reasons for this but the real reason is I did not take the time to write this down. I have been reading more and more about the wages paid to garment factory workers overseas. One of my principles that I wanted to stay true to as I started Opolaire was manufacturing in Canada and, maybe one day, North America. I don’t think I will ever be Google but I have worked for enough companies of various sizes to know how I want to be treated and that’s how I hope I will treat anyone who works with me. And if I don’t I hope someone will call me out on it. Please call me out on it! Show me this post 😊
But back to those wages… I was curious what the average wages were for garment factory workers in some of the countries where a lot of the clothing and accessories that are offered to consumers are manufactured. I did a search and put together the chart below of 5 countries showing the average monthly salary of garment factory workers in USD.
This is, by no means, all encompassing, but you get the idea. I can’t say I was entirely shocked by this but I was dismayed when I thought of the price tags on the items I have purchased over the years. A $200 dollar pair of shoes, or a $100 pair of jeans, or a $50 t-shirt, the list goes on and on. I don’t think the world can be made to change overnight but this is more about fairness. Is it fair that the CEO’s of many of major these corporations make more in the first few hours of a year than their average worker does in a year or the people in these factories that they build their empires on the backs of won’t make that money in a lifetime? I know my answer to that but you can decide for yourself. Your dollars and where you spend your hard earned money can make a difference and can bring about positive change. Don’t ever doubt that!
I know you’re asking, wait, aren’t you the same? Briefly, I do have a desire to grow Opolaire. I won’t say I do not but… I do think there are better ways to grow and more that can be done with revenue and profits than to enrich oneself. There are so many fantastic opportunities to give back to each other and the planet. I have a vision to make Opolaire a giving company, as well as a socially and environmentally responsible one. As a percentage of revenue I would like to make Opolaire the most charitable company. I don’t have all the answers or a plan written in stone but I do have an overall view of what I hope Opolaire will become. Until next time… Be kind to each other and the planet…