On April 24, an eight-story building containing garment factories collapsed in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, killing 1,127. The tragic accident has focused attention on working conditions in clothing factories in developing countries.
The accident may have resulted from the addition of unauthorized extensions to the building. The trigger for the collapse is said to have been the simultaneous restarting of sewing machines after a power failure.
Large producers and retailers of apparel in industrialized countries have taken advantage of the poverty of countries such as Bangladesh to increase their ability to compete on price by procuring products from companies in these countries, which pay very low wages to workers and produce goods in overcrowded factories where health and safety are neglected.