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Thread: A report on Hasbro factory

  1. #11
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    I remember reading some time ago that Slave labor is a lot more common today than what it was during colonial times when slaves were openly bought and sold.

    I think that the only difference is that Slavery is now more subtle or 'masked' than it was before but it is still there.

  2. #12
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    The Institute also draws irony from Hasbro’s allowance of a voluntary code for the conditions of labour, with the very strong legal remedies they enforce for copyright and trademark infringement.
    Gee. I wonder if anyone is going to be going to bat for Hasbro's Intellectual Property in a certain thread after considering this. But I guess that's one of the advantages of working in some of these countries, where laws are flexible or absent of protections. Do you think Takara toys are made in the same factories, or just Hasbro? That would be one factor that would shift me completely to TakaraTomy products over Hasbro.
    On the lookout for MISB Headmaster Highbrow, Takara or Hasbro. I'm sure I could make you a sweet deal!

  3. #13
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    Here is a link to the full report from the website reillyd provided:

    http://www.bleedingcool.com/2011/12/...-transformers/

    Quote Originally Posted by Report Summary
    Workers housed in filthy, over-crowded dorms, infested with rats and bed bugs. Workers report theycannot sleep at night from the bed bug bites.Workers describe factory food as “Pretty much like swine food.”Workers allowed less than 9 minutes to assemble each Hasbro Transformer, for which they are paid 17 cents .

    “We are drenched in sweat,” workers say. Factory temperatures soar to 104 degrees F in summer.

    During peak season, workers toil 12-hour shifts, seven days a week, while earning a take-home wageof just 92 cents an hour.

    Workers undergo three body-searches each day, are not permitted to talk or lift their heads to look around, and need permission to use the bathroom.

    Hasbro is open to the hiring of 14 and 15-year-olds on a “case-by-case basis.”

    Workers in the spray paint department fear they are being exposed to dangerous solvents.

    There are no fire drills and some emergency exits are locked.

    During the slow season, hundreds of workers are fired under false charges so management does not have to pay their legal severance.

    Workers are cheated of paid sick leave and maternity leave.

    Workers describe their work as mindless, miserable, constantly monotonous, yet furious and exhausting.

  4. #14
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    It's not been pulled, you've just got to click on the pamphlet cover (its in the top right hand corner) to get the full thing in the link from the OP
    I'm really just here for the free food and open bar.

  5. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by griffin View Post
    It makes me sad reading that. So much of my happiness has been at the expense of slave labour. Hands up anyone who would want to sit at a cramped table for 11 hours a day, building 7 Transformers an hour, for about $1 an hour? If only there was some way of changing that situation.

    So imagine the reduced turnover of sales if we had to pay 10 times as much for the stuff that is imported - due to them being paid a tenth of what people here would be paid).
    Well considering that we pay at least double what the RRP should be, and that deep sales in the US sometimes have toys at 30-60% off that, I'd gladly pay a little more if it would ACTUALLY get to the workers. And I'd much rather they get the markup than distributors like HasbroAU. Heck, I'd probably be willing to donate a portion of my purchases to a charity that would pass it directly on to the workers. I suspect many collectors would. Since we have big budgets anyway, if we have just a few less plastic robots in our collection to know that we weren't preying on the misery of others, it wouldn't be such a bad thing.
    On the lookout for MISB Headmaster Highbrow, Takara or Hasbro. I'm sure I could make you a sweet deal!

  6. #16
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    Im still disgusted at how hasbro is doing this. I always said they had slaves but never anything like this. And this is just one place in china. What about Vietnam? Wonder what that factory is like.

    If Takara make them in a better factory I should boycott Hasbro TFs. Makes me feel better about all the shonky loose figure deals over the years.

    Would be happy if some of the money would actually go to the workers

  7. #17
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    As I read this, a few thoughts are going through my mind.

    By buying Hasbro's products, in a sense I am contributing to this system of practice, because I demonstrate that I am fulfilling the supply that they generate.

    (By the way, just to clarify, I don't say this as a way of judging people that buy TFs, I am only referring to myself personally)

    China also needs to shoulder its fair share of responsibility. The nation overall has serious ethical / corruption problems at all levels of society. Its people are not valued as human beings. In such an environment, it is not surprising that workers are not afforded the rights that workers in other nations have.

    I am struggling with whether to continue buying TFs. Although I only buy a few each year, when I do see a nice TF figure I usually buy it.

  8. #18
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    Hasbro's response

    Hasbro takes all claims involving working conditions very seriously, and we are immediately investigating. The Company has a strong track record and has had long-standing policies and processes in place for years to help ensure good working conditions, including health and safety, at factories making our products. We strive to conduct business throughout our supply chain in accordance with the highest ethical standards, and we utilize not only ICTI– but also our own on-the-ground workforce– to monitor social compliance. For more information about Hasbro’s comprehensive corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities, including more detail regarding Hasbro’s policies and practices related to ethical product manufacturing, please visit Hasbro.com/csr.

  9. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by reillyd View Post
    Do you think Takara toys are made in the same factories, or just Hasbro?
    I'm pretty sure all Transformers are made in the same factories. Hasbro and Takara.

  10. #20
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    This is disgusting , but sadly not surprising

    I agree that China has a lot to answer for... so does Hasbro. I was having this conversation with someone the other day, in regard to China's bad social and work practices.

    I notice this hasn't been discussed on any other forum except here (at least at the time I'm writing this). Will be interesting to see what happens once it hits the international sites, and also what Hasbro's next move is. I will be following this closely.

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