Sorry, Mike. Those items are pretty scarce at the op shops.

If it wasn’t for the underpaid in Bangladesh and China and other places the underpaid in NZ wouldn’t be able to afford even half-way decent clothing.

And it doesn’t last. It often can’t be passed along to the next size down because the elastic has gone, the colours have faded, the seams have given up.

It’s bad at both ends of the chain.

Hi David, at no point do I suggest a boycott. I am writing two more blogs and the last one will include my thoughts on how best to support the worker from a trade union perspective.

From an environmental perspective the entire industry is unsustainable. At some point we will have to confront our wanton consumerism.

“not buying from Bangladesh would remove what meagre income these people do have wouldn’t it”
We don’t know that.
Perhaps if the employers were told we wont buy their good while they treat workers so appallingly things may change. So we have to tell KMart we wont buy goods imported from these employers.
Which means we all have to.
But most wont because their life here in the ‘wonderful’ New
Zealand is so difficult they have little energy to fight for Bangaldeshi women.

There is a much better strategy than changing where we shop as individuals and it’s been done before: Target one brand (that sells in the western world) with bad publicity and a boycott, tell them the campaign will stop when independent auditors confirm they meet acceptable standards. When they cave in, which they usually do, move on to the next brand.