CHINA:Toys manufactured in China for major multinational firms are being made in "brutal conditions", a US rights group has reported, with some of the world's biggest brands guilty of ignoring even basic Chinese labour laws, writes CliffordCoonan in Beijing.
Toys made for companies such as Disney, Bandai and Hasbro paid "little heed to the most basic standards of the country", said China Labour Watch, whose report was issued after months of investigation.
"Wages are low, benefits are non-existent, work environments are dangerous and living conditions are humiliating," it said, calling on the firms involved to take responsibility for the low standards.
It has been a bad month for Chinese toys - last week Mattel recalled millions of toys, including 436,000 die-cast toy cars from its "Cars" line, because they may contain excessive amounts of lead. Other Chinese products have also been under scrutiny, including toothpaste, food and drugs.
The report said major companies were driven by "short-sighted policies . . . to turn a blind eye to safety, and to ignore the labour conditions in their supplier factories as well.
"Instead of concentrating on improving product safety and workers' lives, companies spend their energy creating beautiful pamphlets on social responsibility, disputing critical reports and shifting blame," the rights group said.
Walt Disney said in a statement it takes claims of unfair labour practices very seriously, investigates any allegations and takes remedial action.
"We have a firm commitment to the safety and wellbeing of workers, and fair and just labour standards," said spokeswoman Alannah Goss.
Hasbro said it takes the report seriously and will conduct a thorough investigation, while noting that its investigations of China Labour Watch claims have shown "some inaccuracies" in the past.
Analysts and entrepreneurs say controlling the supply chain in low-cost manufacturing areas such as southern China is very difficult as it is hard to verify whether a supplier is living up to commitments to meet labour and environmental standards all the time.