Dark Side of the Fashion Industry
Past Renee Nat
By now, it'south mutual knowledge even amid lovers of fast way that there is a dark side of the fashion industry – namely, it's well known that most mode is produced by workers toiling abroad in about slave-like conditions in developing countries around the globe. Just what may come up as a surprise to many is that this dark side exists not only for the poorer people involved in the fashion manufacture, but for some that may be envied for their positions in it.
A Brusque Case Study
Similar nearly students of fashion blueprint, Sarah knew an unpaid internship was the only real stepping-stone to finding a job in the industry. With a Master'south degree and previous intern feel on her CV, she institute a perfect opportunity with a small, just well-known designer. She happily worked the long hours and paid for her commute out of her own pocket, hoping for the internship to atomic number 82 to paid work. "I met lots of new people, information technology was fun. I worked my butt off to be indispensable to anybody, that's just role of my nature."
Sarah's efforts paid off and she was ultimately offered a pocket-size bacon. She kept up her work ethic, but her bank account remained empty. Her employer assured her she'd be paid presently. In the concurrently, Sarah was putting all her expenses on to a loan. "At the time I didn't think I had a choice. I thought to myself, there's zilch else out there and I should stick this out until I get paid."
It would accept several months earlier she saw any cash and even then, it was only a portion of what she owed. As time passed, her paycheques remained elusive and her employer kept trying to dismiss the issue. "I realise now I was beingness used deliberately. She (the employer) was very prissy to me, but was taking advantage of my work. I wasn't an intern anymore, but an unpaid worker." Sarah sought out data about her rights and ultimately, was able to find piece of work elsewhere. The feel withal, left her financially and emotionally dejected. This, sadly, is not an unusual story in the way industry.
Loads of Piece of work, No Pay
Whether yous're an intern, designer, model or photographer, stories of unpaid or poorly paid piece of work in fashion are a mutual tale. For entry level positions with a peak mode house or media conglomerate, it's ofttimes pretty much understood that work volition not be for pay, but for the 'honor' of being able to have a prestigious proper noun on your CV. However, the expectation that the 'laurels' of working with a household mode name will be for gratuitous drags on even later on months – and sometimes years – of working for some fashion enterprises. And goes all the way through the acme levels, besides.
To give some other example, i Editor-in-Primary of a small magazine I know of was asked past a major British style firm to design a publicity campaign for television, which would involve both the designer and the magazine. Afterwards working hard on two pitches, the editor travelled to London at her own expense twice to present her ideas to the designer, who was delighted and accustomed 1 of them, under the assumption that the editor practise all the piece of work, which included making a short picture–for free. 'I was told that attaching myself to her brand would exist payment enough,' she claimed. Needless to say, the project was never realised. Another writer worked 12 hours a mean solar day for an old, iconic Frenchmaison, rushing to write their customer mag in English. When she presented her invoice, they told her it would be better if she would kindly accept her payment–in shoes.
Whilst it'southward no surprise that well-remunerated jobs are hard to come by in small publications or struggling fashion houses (such as near eco-friendly ones), there is no excuse for big multinationals refuse to pay workers fairly, or at all. Even allegedly 'upstanding' brands like Vivienne Westwood refuse to pay a unmarried penny to interns, despite the fact that about ambitious young workers are living in the headquarter cities of these brands, commonly in the world's well-nigh expensive capitals. Somehow, they're expected to get past on the bare minimum, while the companies they work for go on to abound and rake in big revenues.
Models work long hours, for very little pay, if whatever at all.
Every bit the global economy is still reeling in the wake of the recession, luxury goods companies are thriving, though their bottom-of-the-ladder employees may not be so lucky. And yet at that place is no shortage of people willing to take on unpaid fashion piece of work. Speaking almost mode journalism, author Argot Murelius says: "The contest is such that it's a buyer'southward market out there. At that place are always other writers who volition work for less, and hence the bar is not raised, merely constantly lowered."
It certainly doesn't assistance that many publications are turning to high-profile 'talent' to help draw-in readers. "I certainly think information technology'south unfair that unknown talent doesn't go paid properly and that big names do. For instance, Vanity Fair claims that Pippa Middleton is a 'contributor' or some such thing… that's a load of poppycock," says Murelius. Style media and the design industry are two unlike beasts, and yet they're both suffering from a similar disease: the inequitable distribution of wealth. It's the archetype story of inequality that you've heard fourth dimension and time again: the one per cent keeps getting richer while the 99 percent struggles to become past, but in style, the 99 percent is a well-dressed, competitive bunch who are willing to practise whatever it takes to piece of work in this 'glamorous' world.
That 'whatever it takes' can also involve putting upwards with abuse. One editor at a large Hearst publication recalls how in the '90s, when she was just starting out, one of her swain interns was screamed at for having 'frizzy' pilus, and was told to 'take care of information technology' several times. Unsure what to practise with her cursed mane, the girl put information technology dorsum in a (rather frizzy) ponytail for work. Her boss, enraged at this 'unfashionable' look, raged over to her desk with a pair of scissors and, to the horror of anybody around her, cut the whole ponytail off. No one said a word.
That'due south seems pretty farthermost, but things can be even worse.
Sex activity, Drugs and the Fashion World
Popular fashion photographer Terry Richardson fabricated headlines after he ran out of the meridian Parisian club Le Montana when model Rie Rasmussen accused him of sexually exploiting, and fifty-fifty assaulting, young models: "He takes girls who are immature, manipulates them to have their clothes off and takes pictures of them they volition be ashamed of. They are too afraid to say no because their bureau booked them on the task and are besides young to stand up for themselves . . . I don't understand how anyone works with him," she said to the New York Mail. Unfortunately, sexual predation is goose egg uncommon in an manufacture where it'southward said 'it's not who you know, it's who y'all blow' (a quote past the rather sleazy Richardson himself, incidentally). And it tin can get shockingly ugly.
Top model Karen Mulder, for case, claims that execs at Elite Models raped her and prostituted her out to some of France's most elite concern men and politicians. In fact, she says that Elite used her and other superlative models "as sex slaves" in a ring that extended through the meridian echelons of French society – and what she said in an interview with France two was so potentially libelous against the establishment that the channel not only never aired the segment with her, just even destroyed the master tape. Still, Mulder repeated about of her accusations in other interviews, adding that Elite encouraged her to use cocaine and heroin. "All these people who betrayed me I used to honey very much," she told the Daily Mail. "Then I realized how big the conspiracy was. Information technology brought in the government and police, who both used Elite girls. People have tried to kidnap and poison me."
Indeed, drugs are another night side of the fashion industry. The pressure level to await good and work all hours of the solar day and night in an industry based on beauty and social interaction ways that many outset smoking to lose weight, snort cocaine or have MDMA to stay awake, or Valium, Xanax or alcohol to calm downwards. "Everyone who works in fashion knows that if the pick for a position is between a shy, chubby candidate with nifty talent and qualifications or a slim, stylish 1 with loads of charm simply an empty caput, the latter will e'er win out," says fashion intern Anais Holden.
But fifty-fifty so, despite all the potential dangers, pressure, unpaid piece of work and long hours, 'average' people will tolerate all of these obstacles in their struggle to get ahead in way and mayhap become famous in i of the world's almost elite industries. Much to their dismay, yet, they will ofttimes find the almost coveted jobs will be given to those who 'don't need' the money, such every bit children of celebrities, trust fund kids, wives of millionaires and celebrities themselves.
Who Yous Know
These are an elite clique who are 'hired' for the most prestigious jobs equally stylists, writers, photographers, models and the similar, even though they may not be the near qualified or talented. Think well-nigh it: today's huge models Georgia May Jagger, Kaya Gerber, Bella and Gigi Hadid and Cara Delevigne to name just a few all come from wealthy backgrounds; virtually all the staff at Tatler or Vogue are posh and privileged; quite often, family fashion dynasties dictate that only blood relatives will take over of import positions in the most coveted labels: Prada, Ralph Lauren, Saab, to name a few. The tuition at schools like Parsons, ESMOD or Central Saint Martins means only those on heavy scholarships or with big, fat savings accounts can beget to study design with the best.
And so why practice people continue to want to work in this industry? 'Information technology's all I ever wanted to do,' says Alison Krull, a design student. 'Since I was a little daughter, I've been designing clothes. I don't intendance if I work for a famous designer–the best jobs are with the loftier street shops like Zara.' The editor of this very mag told me that afterward having been badly paid or completely unpaid for various high-contour editing jobs, she contemplated her options: 'I've been doing this for half my life, but was really disillusioned with the earth of mainstream fashion, so I started my ain publication,' she says. 'Information technology still doesn't make much money, just at least no one is promising me cash that I may or may not become, and when I piece of work hard, information technology's for myself.'
In well known, high-end fashion and media houses, horror stories of (sometimes criminally) insane employers, soul-burdensome working hours and gruelling piece of work for no pay show no signs of abating. While information technology is noble and right to pressure companies to treat fashion employees fairly in overseas sweatshops, the time to discuss how badly employees in the fashion manufacture are treated in adult countries is at present. Nosotros've become modern manner slaves, quite literally. Don't we deserve to exist treated with dignity, likewise?
*Names have been changed to protect the identities of our correspondents.
*All photography by Emmanuel Sarnin
References:
http://antwerpsex.wordpress.com/2013/08/09/unpaid-internships-feel-or-exploitation/ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/31/donna-karan-sued-unpaid-intern_n_3848148.htmlhttp://finance.hermes.com/en http://www.lvmh.com/investor-relations/documentation http://jezebel.com/5304706/modeling-and-the-tragedy-of-karen-mulder
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Chere has ever loved writing, fashion and languages, and holds degrees in Psychology and Art, and postgraduate degrees in Applied Linguistics and Education. Her long career in journalism spans several continents: she's edited and written for prestigious magazines in Toronto, Dubai, Paris, London and Buenos Aires. Learn more almost Chere's extensive career on LinkedIn.
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