The truth about Canada
- Thread starter china
- Start date
But is what he is saying true?
(Of course it's true. He's always been a conscientious researcher. Cor, the old boy must be so tired! But he keeps on trying to save this country from its leaders. I respect the hell out of that.)
(Of course it's true. He's always been a conscientious researcher. Cor, the old boy must be so tired! But he keeps on trying to save this country from its leaders. I respect the hell out of that.)
A decade ago the factory had 500 employees making 1.3 million shirts. That dwindled to 110 people working reduced hours to make 500,000.
The unusual mission statement for the fledging Canadian-Made Apparel company is written on a board overlooking sewing machines and computerized fabric cutters. It’s nothing more than a date and time — Feb. 21, 2013, 1 p.m.
At precisely that moment, in this very same factory, the owners of John Forsyth Shirt Co. Ltd. told 110 employees that a century of shirt-making would come to an end. The company, established in 1903, was closing its factory — the latest victim of a Canadian-made garment industry decimated by globalization and, in Forsyth’s case, government decisions.
At its most idealistic, globalization is a business model for a world where market forces put everyone on the same development path to affluence and democracy. At its worst, it’s a model for exploitation and corporate conquistadors. In between is a large area where public policy, corporate decisions and consumer attitudes shape a theory often marketed as a force of nature.
The Cambridge factory had been struggling for years. Competition was fierce. The retail price of a Forsyth dress shirt runs from $70 to $125. Shirts made in places like Bangladesh sell for as little as $10 at huge retailers like Walmart. And demand wasn’t going Forsyth’s way.
more
Made in Canada: How globalization has hit the Canadian apparel industry | Toronto Star