NIKE lands into hot water after an Australian TV station discovered that one of its contract factories in Malaysia has been mistreating its foreign workers.

Aired in Channel 7, workers were seen to be living in cramped living quarters and filthy condition. As many as 20 people were force to sleep in one small room.

Their passports were held by the factories. It is part of the agreement where the workers would need to pay the fees equivalent to one year salary (their country currency) to the agents who got them the job.

Until the fees are settled, their passports will not be returned.

Many of the workers come from Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Nike outsources its manufacturing operation to close to 40 factories in Malaysia, most of them producing apparel. Apart from Malaysia, the company has a similar outsourcing structure in more than 50 countries worldwide, with 800,000 people working around the clock to make their products. The company is now subject to intense criticism for its failure to institute a reliable monitoring system.

Popular with the Just-Do-It motto, Nike is one of the largest sportswear and equipment makers in the world. Nike recently grabbed a number of prestigious awards such as The Most Influential Brands (no. 5), Most Innovative Companies (no. 6) and Top Employers for MBA Graduates (no. 8).

Technorati Tags: nike, worker abuse

Other posts you may want to read:

1. The World’s Most Influential Brands
2. Google is the Best Company To Work For
3. Employer Not Paying EPF and SOCSO?
4. Air Asia Offering 1 Million Free Tickets
5. 10 World’s Most Innovative Companies 2008