Nike Claims Vindication With Wage Study

Preliminary findings by researchers from Dartmouth College report workers at Nike factories in Indonesia and Vietnam earn enough to meet their basic needs with money left over for discretionary spending or savings.

The study, paid for by Nike, is the latest effort by the company to fend off persistent accusations that it tolerates inhumane and unjust working conditions in Third World factories that produce its athletic shoes and apparel.

“The data suggests Nike workers in Indonesia and Vietnam can more than make ends meet,” said Eugene Mihaly, who co-supervised the study by a team from Dartmouth’s Amos Tuck School of Business.

But a leading Nike critic said the study was simply another public relations move by the company in the face of continued criticism of conditions at factories that produce products for the world’s largest athletic shoe manufacturer.

“If they would just spend another 75 cents for a pair of shoes on labor costs all these troubles would be solved,” said Jeff Ballinger, director of Press for Change, a watchdog group for labor issues in developing nations.

The study found that the mean monthly wage for workers at its Sam Yang and Chang Shin factories in the Dong Nai province of Vietnam is $47 and $56, respectively. After monthly expenses of $27 for food, clothing and other essentials, the workers have $19 to $26 for discretionary spending or savings, the study said.

In Indonesia, where there are stricter wage and benefit laws, workers at Nike factories earned an average of $96 per month. The money includes overtime. The mandated minimum wage in Indonesia is $66 per month.