The Unethical Part of our World
Child Labor, Environmental Degradation, and Investment Fraud
The Ideal World
Child Labor
Millions of children around the world are deprived of their childhood and forced to work long hours every day. The misery of these innocent children must end.
Environmental Degradation
Environemental Degradation is one of the ten threats officially cautioned by the High Level Threat of the United Nations
Investment Fraud
There were over 1.2 billion dollars worth of Investment scams last year, alone in the U.S.
Child Labor
The People
- 246 million children around the world are deprived of a childhood that every single one of them deserves to have ("Eliminating child labour: The costs and benefits").
- 179 million children worldwide, or one in every 8, experience the worst possible forms of a deleterious and hazardous job environment ("Eliminating child labour: The costs and benefits"). This includes working 12 to 16 hours a day, a seemingly exhausting activity for children as young as 6 years old ("Children pay high price for cheap labour").
- Statistics show that 2.7 million healthy years of the lives of child workers are lost yearly due to the horrific work conditions ("Health Issues").
- Many child workers around the world are subjected to long term socioeconomic and health effects. Studies explain this by reminding that children at these ages experience rapid skeletal growth, need greater amounts of food and rest, have less tolerance for heat and are of a smaller size ("Health Issues").
- Therefore, working at a young age and in dangerous environments will surely harm a child’s physical, mental, and moral wellbeing environment ("Eliminating child labour: The costs and benefits")
Benefits:
- Child labor, unfortunately, is sometimes the only way for some families to achieve an income during intolerable circumstances. As seen in the beginning of the video created by UNICEF, the local woman explains that she loves her job because it is her only source of a pay. Although the work environment is dangerous, she and her son must adapt in order in order for them to survive (UNICEF: World Day against Child Labor). It is clear that the son’s life is on the line if his future repeats his childhood.
- Studies show that income shocks, like natural disasters or diseases, in families where the parents are the most affected urges innocent children to partake in child labor ("Child Labour").
- Some adolescents in Bolivia claim it their right to work and gain an income. However, they form unions as large as 100,000 children and fight for improved work conditions in which they can work safely and not be exploited (Friedman-Rudovsky). This is another form of child labor that conforms to human rights.
- Cheaper prices is becoming a popular necessity for consumers. Corporations like Walmart have the ability to offer products with competitive and cheaper prices due to child labor.
Businesses
- Unfortunately, child labor becomes disadvantageous to a corporation once its actions towards forcing young children to work are exposed and condemned.
- Large businesses like H&M have a history in indirectly encouraging some form of child labor for their own interests. An article discusses the linkage of child labor in Uzbekistan’s cotton farms with H&M (Doward). This caused a buildup of various stories that criticized H&M as well as brought the attention of the Anti-Slavery International charity to the matter. The charity pressured H&M for answers regarding the issue leading the company into path it did not want to go.
- 14 young boys in India were enslaved and forced to work in appalling conditions to make Christmas products that were mostly sold in the west ("The Real Cost of Cheap Goods is High: The Scary Truth Behind Some Christmas Ornaments"). A group named the Global March Against Child Labor was able to free these children from their horrifying lifestyle. Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown who discussed this issue claimed that many people refused buying many of these Christmas products after hearing the story behind them which caused a definite decrease in demand for the businesses selling.
Benefits:
- When it comes to large international corporations, child labor is often cheaper than abiding by humanitarian laws.
- The expensive human cost is the reason a shirt that sells for $60 in the United States only costs 10 cents ("Children pay high price for cheap labour").
- More than half of the 22,000 garment contractors in the United States practice unethical behavior by exploiting their employees and paying them low wages. An example of such human rights violation is the Thai workers case in Los Angeles who, as the Department of Labor reports, received $1.60 per hour of work (Ramishvilli).
- Adolescents working in the manufacturing and service sectors may experience a positive aspect of working at a young age which is the development of skills to be used as an adult. Such notion, some argue, can enhance earnings as an adult (M.Emerson, and Portela Souza). This type of child labor is important for companies who prefer a more experienced work force for better production.
The Government
- The persistence of child labors in some countries is proven to be less beneficial than educating children to be a part of future productive generations. The International Labor Organization (ILO) claims that the costs of eliminating child labor is US$760 billion (loss of jobs), however the benefit is US$5.1 trillion! This means that there is a greater benefit in educating children to take on high-paying careers in the future rather than forcing them to work for low wages ("Eliminating child labour: The costs and benefits").
- The ILO shows that the elimination cost of child labor to families in need of that income may actually be compensated by implementing an income transfer program and education program ("Eliminating child labour: The costs and benefits"). This translates into a greater benefit for some countries that are willing to ban child labor than to countries that want its existence to continue.
- Estimations by the ILO show that universal education for children 14 and younger brings about 11 percent increase in income yearly ("Eliminating child labour: The costs and benefits"). This accompanied by the elimination of dangers on health and productivity would cause tangible economic gains for a country.
- Some countries Involved in child labor, like Uzbekistan and its conflict with H&M, experience damage to their reputation globally by countries and organizations that condemn their actions (Doward). A country’s reputation on a global level is very important.
Benefits:
- Newly industrializing nations find child labor as a benefit to the economy. The integration of foreign investment by the introduction of new factories and ultimately job opportunities is a way to get a country’s economy active. The availability of jobs for citizens in some developing countries outweighs the harsh work conditions that follow with such employment.
- Children aren’t aware of their rights when it comes to work at such a young age. This notion can be abused by many governments. Instead of hiring adults who are more aware of different job environments, it is cheaper and more economical for a country to hire children and trick them into low wages. Since children are treated like a minority, any resistance they provide to a government is easily shut down by harsh measures.
Investment Fraud
What is Investment Fraud?
Investment fraud is when; investors invest into a certain business venture and the business runs off with their money. People that run an investment fraud are usually known as Ponzi Schemers. The targets of these investment frauds are most of time people that are new in a country or certain area, aren’t familiar with the venture, do not know about investment frauds and sometimes they are just straight out dull. There are two types of Ponzi Schemers the ones that take the money for their own benefit and then there are those like Robinhood; who take money from the rich and give it the poor. But in today’s world there are more of the first types, who take the money for their own benefit.
How to avoid Investment Fraud
There are numerous ways one car avoid being caught in a scheme that plans to take a large sum of thier hard earned money:
1. Just Staight-Out, don't give money to people you do not trust
2. Do a little backround research on the person or project you are investing into
3. Make sure you know where to contact the person who your giving your money to and that means more than a cell-phone number.
4. Get advice from an investment advisor
5. Watch the video below
Investment Fraud from a consumer’s point of view
“I’ve lost everything, my job, my house, my car and I’m close to losing my family and that’s the one thing I don’t want to lose. My wife’s taken the kids to her mother’s. I’m living in some cheap motel where you wouldn’t have caught me dead a month ago. I don’t know what to do. Either I succumb to the scheme and let it take over life and lead me to suicide or I join the schemers and scheme other people”
Investment Fraud from Ponzi Schemers POV
“WOW, I can’t believe I did it again! It’s just getting easier every time and the funniest part is that they trust me with their money what fools. It’s like you ask them for money and they give it to you! All I have to do is make myself look like a trustworthy person who is knowledgeable about investing and they just hand money over. Well now I better lay low for a while and let this thing blow over.”
Investment Fraud from the Governments POV
Below listed are the cons for the consumers of investment fraud:
· Loss of money saved for something or valuable towards a futuristic investment
· Filing for bankruptcy due to severe losses caused by money shortage
· Depression
· Families being torn apart
Below listed are the negatives for governments dealing with investment fraud
· Dealing with bankruptcy cases
· Spending tax payers money on judges and legal aid to fight Ponzi scheme cases
· Giving people welfare so they can sustain their lives
Below listed are the Benefits and Costs for people running investment fraud
Costs:
· Bad reputation
· Risk involved of getting caught
· If caught, the severity of the case to shut you down
Benefits:
· Easy money
· Can go as long as you want it too
· Don’t have to work too hard
Environmental Degradation
What is Environmental Degradation?
Environmental degradation is a result of socio-economical, technological and institutional activities and occurs when Earth's natural resources are depleted. These resources which are affected include: water, air, soil. Degradation also has an impact on: wildlife, plants, animals, micro-organisms. The earths land, water, and soil are compromised when people exhaust resources or release harmful chemicals in the air. Deforestation, wasting resources, and pollution all add to the detriment of living in an environmentally safe planet. For example, when forest trees are cut down in large quantities, wildlife that once lived in those forests must find a new place to live. The vegetation that once grew on the land is destroyed and trees that absorbed carbon dioxide to help the biosphere are now unable to do so. Environmental degradation is one of the Ten Threats officially cautioned by the High Level Threat Panel of the United Nations. The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction defines environmental degradation as “The reduction of the capacity of the environment to meet social and ecological objectives, and needs.”
The Government
Cost # 1: Money
Cost # 2: Time
Not only does environmental degradation cost the government money but it costs the government time. Typically governments would aim to help their country to progress in areas such as technology and agriculture, or education. If the government has to focus on environmental issues then they would not be able to focus on other issues. It is important that governments intervene with businesses that cause environmental degradation. Despite the fact that countries such as Canada and the United States have market economies, the government still intervenes if businesses or companies cause environmental degradation.
Benefit # 1: Laws Created
As environmental issues occur due to the ways business is conducted the government must create laws to prevent environmental degradation. These laws will ensure that for future purposes the environment will be protected. These laws are designed to protect the natural environment and our ecosystem by controlling pollution and protecting natural resources. Many of these laws are regulatory in nature. They are designed to change the private conduct in ways that will help preserve and protect human health and the environment. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and with safeguarding the natural environment which includes air, water and land. The laws that the government creates are important and prevent the future safety of the environment.
Benefit # 2: Better Economy
Some operating businesses come at the expense of the environment. For example, manufacturing factories hurt the environment because of the smog pollution it creates and because of the fact that natural land (which inhabitated numerous species) is taken away. However, these factories are crucial because they provide jobs for numerous people and these people pay taxes to the government. Even though the environment is harmed the government is still making money and for this reason it is a benefit for the government.
Businesses
Cost # 1: Conflict between businesses
Benefit # 1: Job Opportunities
Factories and businesses that hurt the environment create numerous jobs for people and cannot be shutdown or closed for that reason. Some businesses that make profit come at the cost of the environment and because so many people work for these businesses they can never be closed. Also, as ironic as this sounds, the fact that some businesses create environmental problems, allows opportunities for other businesses to develop in order to protect the environment. For example, Wildlife Society – WWFo is an organization that helps wildlife and the environment and has created jobs for people interested in saving the earth.
Benefit # 2: Money
Some businesses operate at the cost of hurting the environment unfortunately. Through this, they create or provide products for consumers and in return these businesses make money. For example, Duke Energy is a company that Business Insider named “The 15 Worst Companies for the Environment.” Contrary, Duke Energy still provides renewable energy to areas in North America.
Consumer/Citizen People
Cost # 1: Air pollution
Cost # 2: Water Pollution and Scarcity
The UN estimates more than two million deaths and billions of illnesses a year are attributable to water pollution. Water scarcity compounds these health problems. Productivity is affected by the costs of providing safe water, by constraints on economic activity caused by water shortages, and by the adverse effects of water pollution and shortages on other environmental resources such as, declining fisheries and aquifer depletion leading to irreversible compaction.
Cost # 3: Solid and hazardous waste
Diseases are spread by uncollected garbage and blocked drains; the health risks from hazardous wastes are typically more localized. Wastes affect productivity through the pollution of groundwater resources.
Cost # 4: Atmospheric Changes
Ozone depletion is responsible for perhaps 300,000 additional cases of skin cancer a year and 1.7 million cases of cataracts. Global warming may lead to increase in the risk of climatic natural disasters. Productivity impacts may include sea-rise damage to coastal investments, regional changes in agricultural productivity and disruption of the marine food chain.
Benefit # 1: Products for Consumers