KS3 Mastery Christmas Project.
Your child has been identified as being high potential in Humanities and in this academic
year, will be aiming to achieve mastery level. To help pupils achieve this level they are being
provided with a mastery level investigation pack. This will allow pupils to demonstrate
mastery skills. Pupils will be expected to complete their investigation pack over the
Christmas period and hand in on 4th January 2016 to Miss Taylor.
TASK: To investigate the global corperation Nike and comment upon and evaluate the
working conditions for employees in poorer countries. Students will need to complete their
own research, plan and write a report evaluating Nike’s working conditions.
Nike Research: You will be exploring some websites to answer the following questions.
1. What overall image is Nike trying to project? Brainstorm words that describe the
image.
2. How does image compare to reality for most people who buy and wear Nike products?
3. In what ways do the specific images on the site try to manipulate young people like
you?
4. What kinds of things does the site tell you about Nike clothing and shoes? What does
it not tell you?
Useful Websites
http://www.nike.com/nikefootball/home/?locale=en_GB
http://www.educatingforjustice.org/stopnikesweatshops.htm
http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/sweatshops/nike
Company Overview (taken from the Nike website)
FOUNDING
Back before the Swoosh logo and long before the days we were called Nike, there was Blue
Ribbon Sports (BRS). It was the company Phil Knight, our founder, and legendary track coach
Bill Bowerman created in 1964 to provide athletes with better shoes. Their first year sales
totaled around $8,000. It wasn’t until 1971 that BRS introduced the concept of the Greek
winged Goddess of victory—Nike— followed by the launch in 1972 of the company we know
today as Nike. In December 1980 we went public. And the rest is history.
EMPLOYEES
Nike employs more than 36,000 people globally. Our Nike World Headquarters located in
Beaverton, Oregon is home to more than 7,000 employees.
REVENUE
For the fiscal year ending May 31, 2010, we reported revenues of $19.0 billion.
NIKE WORLD CAMPUS
The original Nike World Headquarters officially opened its doors in June 1990. By 2001, the
original campus had doubled in size with the addition of six more buildings.
The Nike campus today consists of 17 main buildings whose names pay tribute to some of our
most legendary athletes: John McEnroe, Joan Benoit Samuelson Center, Michael Jordan, Bo
Jackson (gym), Mike Schmidt, Nolan Ryan, Lance Armstrong (gym), Mia Hamm, Ken Griffey,
Jr., Pete Sampras, Jerry Rice, Tiger Woods Center, The Joe Paterno and C. Vivian Stringer
Child Development Centers, Dan Fouts, Alberto Salazar, and Steve Prefontaine Hall. The sixacre lake that rests at the heart of the Nike World Campus is seven feet deep at its
deepest point. Home to migratory ducks and geese, this serene lake has been known to
surprise a few employees not watching where they’re going.
At 450,000 square feet, the Mia Hamm building is the largest on campus. Coming in at a notso-close second is the Nolan Ryan Building on the original campus (completed in December
1992) at 225,000 square feet. All together, the buildings on campus total slightly more than
2 million square feet or just about 35 football fields.
The main entry to Nike World Campus is at One Bowerman Drive, honouring legendary
University of Oregon, Olympic Track and Field coach and Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman.
In addition to our 193-acre campus near Beaverton, we operate across the world in a variety
of facilities. Our first Niketown store opened in 1990 in downtown Portland. This first store
set the standard for interactive consumer environments. Averaging more than 30,000 square
feet of selling space, Niketowns attract millions of consumers every year around the globe.
Nike also has Nike Stores, NikeFactory Stores and NikeWomen stores in the US and around
the world.
Facts about Nike, taken from Nike's 2004 Corporate Responsibility Report
Harassment Issues
- In 25% to 50% of Nike’s partner factories, workers report verbal, physical, sexual and /or
psychological abuse.
Working Hours
- In 50% to 100% of Nike’s partner factories, work hours exceed Nike’s Code of Conduct.
- In 25% to 50% of Nike’s partner factories, one day off in seven is not provided (i.e.
employees are working 7 days a week).
- In 25% to 50% of Nike’s partner factories, work hours exceed legal limit.
- In up to 25% of Nike’s partner factories, when workers refuse to work overtime they are
penalized.
Wages
- In 10% to 25% of Nike’s partner factories, the wage calculation rate is inaccurate (i.e. the
amount that workers are paid is wrong, and most likely below what they should get).
- In 25% to 50% of Nike’s partner factories, wages paid to workers are below the legal
minimum wage.
Child Labour
- In 10% to 25% of Nike’s partner factories, worker age verification is inconsistent or not
well-documented.
- In up to 10% of Nike’s partner factories, there are workers younger than Nike’s "Child
Labour" standard.
NIKE - FACT SHEET
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Nike factory workers are working 26 to 27 days per month plus 40 to 65 hours of
overtime. We found months when workers were forced to work over 100 hours of
overtime per month.
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15 Vietnamese women told CBS News that they were hit over the head by their
supervisor for poor sewing. 2 were sent to the hospital afterward.
Workers in a Vietnam Nike shoe factory make on 20 cents an hour or $1.60 per day.
The cost of three meals per day in Vietnam is about $2.
On Nov. 26, 1996, 100 workers at the Vietnam Nike factory were forced to stand in
the sun for half an hour for spilling a tray of fruit on a table which three supervisors
were using. One employee (Nguyen Minh Tri) walked out after 18 minutes, and was then
formally fired.
A Nike factory supervisor left Vietnam after he was accused of sexually molesting
several women workers.
Nike claims that the supervisor was fired and sent back to Korea. But at the court
case, the boss of Nike insulted these two women and said that the supervisor was just
trying to wake them up and must have touched the wrong places.
45 women were forced by their supervisors to kneel down with their hands up in the
air for 25 minutes.
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It is a common occurrence for workers to faint from exhaustion, heat, fumes and poor
nutrition during their shifts.
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Women workers told CBS News that they are forced to work overtime. Most workers
at Nike factories are forced to work 600+ hours of overtime per year -- well above
the legal limit of 200 hours per year. If they do not accept the forced overtime, they
will get a warning and after three warnings they will get fired.
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On International Day, March 8, 1997, 56 women at the Nike factory were forced to
run around the factory grounds. 12 of them fainted and were taken to the hospital by
their friends. This was particularly painful to the Vietnamese because it occurred on
International Women’s Day, an important holiday when Vietnam honours women.
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Workers cannot go to the bathroom more than once per 8-hour shift and they cannot
drink water more than twice per shift.
Children age 13-15 are employed in the sewing, handwork, and cutting departments of
one factory despite laws not allowing underage labour.
Factories consistently violate minimum wage laws.
Workers routinely work 72 hours a week with compulsory overtime, in violation of
company codes for a 40-hour week. Those who refuse overtime can be fined, docked
an entire day's pay, or even fired.
Workers who become pregnant are often fired in violation of labour law granting
workers maternity leave.
Due to poor safety conditions, workers lose fingers and even hands in machinery and
are exposed daily to dust and noise pollution and benzyne, a glue known to cause
anaemia and leukaemia that is so toxic it has been banned in the U.S. and Europe.
Talking during work is punishable by fines.
Workers reported being beaten by security guards and routinely subjected to verbal
attacks by supervisors.
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Task: Now you have completed your research into Nike and their working practices. Your
task is to write up your findings as a geographical report. Use your research into Nike to
argue for or against the statement below. Remember to plan and provide evidence to support
your views.
Do you agree or disagree with the statement below:
Nike working practices are fair for their employees in poorer countries. I would not
recommend any changes to their working conditions.
Grading Criteria:
Emerging:
I can describe 3 pieces of factual information on Nike, identify the locations of Nike factories and its
headquarters. Describe the products that Nike manufacturers. I can explain the working conditions in a Nike
factory, including 4 different points. I can explain why Nike gets their products made in LEDCs. I have made
some attempt to write formally. Points may be a little under developed. Purpose and audience may not be clear.
I can use clear sentences with punctuation and formal language. I am using Paragraphs in my work. I have used
no key geographical vocabulary.
Developing:
I can explain the characteristics of global companies like Nike. I can explain what is meant by the term
globalisation. I have begun to evaluate the effects of globalisation. I am using some evidence to support my
claims about working conditions in Nike factories. Clear structure, appropriate content formally expressed.
Purpose and audience clear. I can show some variety in sentence structure with accurate punctuation and use
formal language adapted to task. My paragraphs show signs of linkage. I have used limited key geographical
vocabulary.
Secure:
I can explain in detail how Nike convinces consumers that they are an ethical organisation. I have used a
variety of evidence to support my views and conclusions about Nike. I can start to evaluate why Nike would want
to project an ethical image to its consumers. There is a clear opening and conclusion. Middle section deals
formally and logically with the issue. Purpose and audience clear. I can use varied sentence structures for
persuasive effect and use formal language adapted to task. My paragraphs are well linked. I am using a range of
key geographic vocabulary.
Mastery:
I can give my own ideas on how to improve working conditions in Nike factories Bruno’s life and I can explain
how my options would improve the conditions for Nike workers. I can start to evaluate why people still by Nike
products while knowing about the unethical working conditions. I can suggest what will happen to the workers in
Nike factories if their working conditions are not improved. My SPAG and literacy are perfect and I have made
no literacy mistakes. I have used a wide range of key geographical vocabulary.