Ten years to the day after the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh, a disaster that killed more than 1,100 workers and injured another 2,500, the global addiction to cheap clothing remains strong.
In New Zealand, fast fashion has gone from strength to strength, fuelled by the ongoing cost of living crisis, low wages and accessible cheap clothing.
And it is understandable.
When you’re struggling to pay rent or put food on the table, it’s a lot harder to think about the needs of others – particularly those overseas and essentially invisible in your daily life.
Our research has shown that a person’s subjective wellbeing – how they evaluate their life circumstances, experiences and feelings in relation to the people around them – needs to be good before they have room for moral and ethical consumer dilemmas such as sustainability, the environment and fair wages.
The cracks that killed
There were a number of factors that led to the Rana Plaza disaster. The eight-storey building had visible – and growing – cracks in a wall that were worsened by the vibrations of a two-tonne generator on the roof.
Garment workers, working in conditions akin to modern slavery, raised their concerns with managers but were told they would lose their jobs if they didn’t continue to work in the building.
A power cut on the morning of April 24, 2013, led to the use of the generator, causing the building to collapse. Garment labels for a number of global brands were found in the rubble. Rana Plaza is considered one of the worst industrial disasters ever, second only to the 1984 Union Carbide accident that killed 3,787 people in Bhopal, India.
In the Rana Plaza aftermath, the building’s owner, factory bosses and the Bangladesh government were blamed. But the spotlight was also shone on the fast fashion phenomenon. The workers and factory owners were under intense pressure to meet relentless production deadlines for clothing brands around the world, and do so at minimum cost.