ABSTRACT
The global garment industry is renowned for low wages, excessive overtime and poor working conditions. There is much evidence that wages in the garment industry are structurally failing to meet the basic needs of workers (USDOL, 2000). In many cases the legal minimum wages set for workers in the apparel industry fails to provide enough income to maintain a family of four above the nationally defined poverty level. In some countries, Bangladesh for example, the monthly minimum wage of 1662 Taka (16.60 Euros) is even less than the UN absolute poverty thresholds of one US dollar a day.
