Does JCPenny have sweat shops?
While I, admittedly, cannot answer that question definitively, I
think a few clarifications of points within your question are
necessary in order to begin to answer the question accurately.
1. First, JCPenny is a primarily a department store that sells
the products of other brand names. For instance, they sell Liz
Clairborne as well as other exclusive and private brands.
2. It is these private brand--these clothing companies--that may
contract with garment factories around the world to actually sew
the clothing.
3. Not all garment factories fall in the category of what are
typically referred to as "sweatshops"--where working conditions and
pay scales are considered objectionable by those in "advanced"
countries.
4. JCPenny does, in fact, have an in-house design team that
creates fashions for the company's private lines. I do not know
So, with these four points of clarification, we can begin to
answer your question:
Even though we don't know the exact nature of all of their
holdings and assets, based on the above, it's likely that neither
JCPenny nor any of the private brand companies actually "have"
garment factories. They simply outsource--or hire--these factories
(typically in other countries where labor is cheaper) to create the
clothing.
With that said, it is also likely that many of these garment
factories do, in fact, have work conditions that would be
considered objectionable by those of us who categorize certain
conditions as being "sweatshops."
So, while a definitive answer is hard to come by without some
more investigation into their manufacturing practices and
contracts, if your reason for asking is to decide if you should
spend your money there, it might be important to determine what
specific brands that are sold through JCPenny are actually dealing
with "sweatshops."
Hope this helps as a first step towards the answer you seek.
You are invited to check out a book called "Chicken Feathers
& Garlic Skin: Diary of a Chinese Garment Factory Girl on
Saipan" (also available in Kindle/Nook formats) to read more about
the actual conditions in garment factories right here on US soil on
the island of Saipan, a US Commonwealth near Japan.
Walt F.J. Goodridge
the "as told to" author of the recommended book