July 10, 2020

Coronavirus highlights exploitation in the U.K.

topic:	Economic Fairness
located:	United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Belgium, France
editor:	Gurmeet Singh

Spinney Hills and North Evington in Leicester are like many other British inner-city areas: terraced-housing, a multicultural population, various religious buildings. Like these other areas, they suffer from deprivation. But unlike, say, Brixton in London, Handsworth in Birmingham, or Longsight in Manchester, Spinney Hills and Evington offer residents opportunities for employment in locally-owned businesses. This is because Leicester has a long and continuous history of involvement in the textile industry.

Once a powerhouse of British industry during the Industrial Revolution, the textile industry has remained strong in the city throughout the 20th Century. Now, many smaller, locally-owned businesses have become integrated into the ‘fast-fashion’ industry, with factories providing clothes for major online retailers.

That isn’t to say that these employment opportunities are good, or even safe. Indeed, as recent events in the city have demonstrated, many of these jobs are highly dangerous. The BBC writes: “Textile factories in Leicester have come under the spotlight after the government said it was "concerned" about working conditions in the city.

Some employees told the BBC they worked throughout lockdown for less than minimum wage in conditions where it was "impossible" to stay safe, saying they felt they had no other choice.

…Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Sunday he was "very worried about the employment practices in some factories" and Public Health England (PHE) said the combination of living and working conditions in the east of the city will have likely contributed to the high numbers there.”

The factories in question are suppliers to online fashion retailer Boohoo. The company is aimed at a young market, and belongs to the ‘fast-fashion’ sector; where clothes come in and out of fashion much more rapidly than the traditional ‘seasons’, and new styles and lines are constantly marketed to create new demand.

For example, at the beginning of lockdown, Boohoo began aggressively marketing (and developing) new lines of pyjamas, which were marketed as ‘chic’ indoor clothes products. Local paper, The Leicester Mercury, comments: “Management at the Boohoo fashion giant have said they are “grateful” to the Sunday Times for highlighting alleged sweatshop conditions at a Leicester factory apparently making items for it. The Manchester-based online retailer has been hit by suggestions that suppliers to it in Leicester were paying workers below the minimum wage - and making staff work through the lockdown.”

The development has had a major impact on the city, with Leicester being placed under lockdown once again. Not only does this fit a wider trend of Coronavirus outbreaks in Europe occurring in deprived areas, but it also raises some serious questions about employment practises. Bloomberg writes: “The continent’s latest string of…flare-ups are now occurring in some of [the] most deprived neighbourhoods, often those inhabited by minorities or immigrants who work in low-paid jobs that are crucial to buttressing the economy.”

Questions have also been raised about the prospect of modern slavery taking place in these factories: “The visits were from the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA), Leicestershire Police, Leicester City Council, National Crime Agency, Health and Safety Executive, Leicestershire Fire and Rescue and Immigration Enforcement.

In a statement to the Manchester Evening News, the GLAA said: 'No enforcement has been used during the visits and officers have not at this stage identified any offences under the Modern Slavery Act 2015.'"

What constitutes slavery, however? The incidents thus far do not appear to involve forced labour or human trafficking but perhaps there is a grey area between slavery and precariousness. This grey area, called exploitation, is exactly what has happened at the Leicester factories: people in need of work, with little social and union protections, being made to work for less than minimum wage during a health crisis. Reports of intimidation and threats against workers speaking out have also occurred.

Furthermore, the cases raise major questions about why these people have not been protected by the government or through social safety nets with adequate welfare. We may also find it worthwhile to question the nature of our industries and economies, with some sectors relying on exploitation.

There are many areas like Spinney Hills and North Evington in the U.K. and Europe. How many similar cases will we see in the near future?

Image by jotoler