Standing in front of your closet, staring at a mass of clothes, thinking, “I have nothing to wear.” To some, it’s a familiar sentiment.

In the age of Snapchat, Instagram, and Facebook, clothes become disposable. We can’t fathom wearing the same outfit twice if photo evidence exists on social media. With complete outfits accessible for less than $30, why not?

Over the past decade, consumers have become impatient, only shopping brands with new merchandise every week and the lowest price tag. Fashion has morphed from two seasons a year into 52. Brands condition shoppers to bargain hunt until every last cent is saved. As a result, we buy 400% more than just two decades ago. Yes, 400%!

There comes a point where the “bargain brag” eclipses the thousands of people working to make these disposable garments that will inevitably be tossed after a few wears.

Essentially, product deflation has occurred, yet the cost of production hasn’t gone down. How can this be?

Race to the Bottom

Production is outsourced to economies that don’t pay workers a living wage. Factory managers are pressured by American brands to produce cheaper than their competitors. The managers then push their workers harder so the brand does not take their business to another factory.

This constant competition for profits in the Western world causes the search for cheap labor - known as the Race to the Bottom. The downward pressure on costs prompts factories to cut corners and disregard safety to remain open while brands disregard human capital in their cost of doing business.

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911 killed 146 garment workers and set the stage for improved labor standards for garment workers. The biggest industrial tragedy at the time, it shocked the world. Yet over a century later, the same issues are still happening.

The Savar garment factory in Dhaka Bangladesh collapsed and killed nearly eight times the amount of workers in 2013. A Rana Plaza survivor recalls watching cracks in her factory building spread. Worrying for her safety and that of her coworkers, she pointed this out to management. They ignored her concerns and required everyone to return, even though other tenants evacuated. Hours later, the building collapsed, killing over one thousand people and going down in history as the worst garment factory disaster ever.

The True Cost

Most women who work in these factories move away from their children and families to work in cities and only see their loved ones a few times a year. Everyday grievances include pay below a living wage, management disregard for worker health and safety, and long hours of work which often lead to long term ailments.

Arif Jebtik says, “It’s 21st century, a global world we are living in, and we are just ignoring other people’s lives, how come?”

Apart from the fact that American consumers are so removed from the production process that they may be ignorant of the facts, there is a pervasive argument that factory jobs are better than alternatives for these garment workers. Terrible conditions like physical assault and forced overtime are justified saying it is a better job than any substitutes, yet these women are unable to ever work their way out of poverty.

One in six people in the world work in some part of the global fashion industry. Workers have no voice in the industry and we, in the Western world, profit from their need to work.

So how can we turn a blind eye to this many people? We don’t have to.

What You Can Do

The key to solving this problem is to reduce consumption. Advertisers tell us that their product will meet our needs; that we will be happy if we make the purchase.

According to True Cost, there are two kinds of products: things you use long term like washing machines and cars, and perishable things you use up like chewing gum and cigarettes. We need to start treating garments as long term items that we keep and rework for years.

The first step is to stop shopping fast fashion. Unsubscribe from email lists, resist browsing online, and be thankful for the clothes you do have. Borrow from friends, and rework your current wardrobe to pair together outfits you may not have tried.
Make your clothes last longer. Wash in cold water on gentle and pay attention to care labels so you know when to hand wash - both wallet and planet approved!
When you do need a few pieces to refresh your wardrobe, do some research and find transparent, ethical brands that treat their workers well and disclose factory information. Give the #30wearschallenge a shot and try to only buy pieces that you will wear at least 30 times (like jeans and tees!).
Reward the brands that are putting people over profit, and help raise the standard of the fashion industry.

Learn more about how Standard Apparel is transforming the apparel industry.