An expose on sweatshops in Los Angeles that exploit mostly undocumented workers, paying them less than minimum wage to work in slave-like conditions, and the loop-holes protecting retailers that use these sweatshops for their house brands — including Forever 21, TJ Maxx and Marshall’s.
labor
Posted inEditor's Pick
Disguised in Plain Clothes, but No Superman
After a shooting at Iowa State, Chris Wiewiora let his teaching contract there expire, and chose to instead drive a municipal bus. His passengers were often former students.
Posted inFood, Nonfiction, Quotes
An Ode to Dishwashers, the Unsung Heroes of the Restaurant Kitchen
As Emeril Lagasse puts it, “You can’t have a successful service in a restaurant without a great dishwasher.”
Posted inBooks, Current Events, Nonfiction
A Portrait of the Artist as an Undocumented Immigrant
A Mexican writer recalls undocumented life at a restaurant in New York and as a nanny in Connecticut.
Posted inBooks, Current Events, Nonfiction, Story
A Portrait of the Artist as an Undocumented Immigrant
A Mexican writer recalls undocumented life at a restaurant in New York and as a nanny in Connecticut.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Rigged
Did you know that your Ralph Lauren polo shirt was driven to the warehouse by an indentured servant? At USA Today, Brett Murphy reports on how port truckers — required to lease their trucks from their companies — are essentially working as indentured servants for pennies (or less) each week as they struggle to drive […]
Posted inBlog Post, Business & Tech, Current Events
We Need to Talk About Uber: A Timeline of the Company’s Growing List of Problems
Uber’s missteps and high-profile scandals have piled up since 2013. Here’s a timeline.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
For Caregivers from the Philippines, the Israeli Dream Is Fragile
In colloquial Hebrew, the word filipinit — a woman from the Philippines — is no longer a simple demonym; Filipinas have dominated the eldercare sector in Israel for so long that it has become a generic term for “caregiver.” In the New York Times Magazine, Ruth Margalit explores the stories of precariously employed women and […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
Israel’s Invisible Filipino Work Force
Tens of thousands of Filipinos — mostly women — keep Israel’s caregiving sector afloat, while navigating homesickness, cultural tensions, and often-exploitative labor practices.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
Below Deck: A Dickensian Horror Story
Lizzie Presser reports on the Dickensian treatment of Filipino workers aboard Carnival Cruise Line ships — where the routine involves 12 and 14-hour days, seven days a week for paltry pay and zero overtime — just to be able to provide better lives for families they rarely get to see.