Extended Summary

Working in jobs worthy of human dignity and in workplaces that comply with the standards set by social policy are among the fundamental rights of every individual. However, the countries where this right becomes a real commitment are limited. Countries that declare themselves as social states determine the limits of working life through social policies and punish capital with a corporatist approach if these limits are exceeded. On the other hand, in regimes that have not adopted the concept of a social state or implemented weak social policies, the human right to work often remains a wish for good will. The social state approach aims to ensure the social and economic security of individuals. This understanding protects the rights of workers with policies regarding working life and determines the standards in workplaces. In countries where the social state is strong, workers are prevented from being exposed to long working hours and working in unsafe and dangerous workplaces. In addition, negative situations such as low wages, insecure and often unregistered work are minimized. However, in countries that have not adopted social state status or are weak in its implementation, such protections cannot be provided adequately and workers’ rights are frequently violated. The sweatshop concept generally describes workplaces where long working hours, unsafe and dangerous workplaces, low wages and insecure working are common. Such working conditions endanger the physical and psychological health of workers and create a work environment that is not worthy of human dignity. Sweatshops are common in developing countries and in regimes that implement poor social policies. Such workplaces provide unfair profits to capital by producing at low costs.

This study aims to develop an index that measures the employment conditions of countries by clarifying the sweatshop concept. The main purpose of the study is to determine with a statistical method which countries produce under sweatshop conditions and which ones observe humane conditions. Within the scope of the study, it has been clarified how a workplace can be classified as a sweatshop, the employment dimension of sweatshops has been revealed, and the extent to which sweatshops provide profit to capital has been shown with offers received from two different countries for the same product. The developed “Sweat Index” was designed to objectively evaluate and compare the working conditions of countries. This index analyzes working conditions and workers’ rights in workplaces through various criteria. The index includes criteria such as working hours, wage levels, job security, job security and unregistered work. These criteria are factors that directly affect the working conditions of workers.

Within the scope of the study, first of all, the concept of sweatshop was defined and the equivalent of this concept in today’s conditions was determined. In the second stage, the employment aspect of sweatshops was discussed in the perspective of the seriousness of these workplaces and the threat they pose to humanity. In the third stage, the working life statistics of selected countries were analyzed using the “feature scaling” method. As a result of these analyses, it has been revealed which countries have sweatshop-level working conditions. According to Sweat Index analyses, it has been determined that employment conditions in a significant part of OECD countries carry the risk of becoming a sweatshop. It has been determined that working in sweatshop conditions is common, especially in developing countries and regimes that implement weak social policies. This situation emerges as a serious problem that threatens the physical and psychological health of workers.

In line with the findings of the study, it is recommended to develop social policies at the international level to prevent the negative working conditions caused by sweatshops. These policies should include regulations that protect workers’ rights and guarantee humane working conditions. In addition, it is important to strengthen the understanding of the social state and disseminate this understanding in all countries. In order for workers to work with dignity, the scope of social policies should be expanded and their effectiveness in practice should be increased. It is the fundamental right of every individual to work in jobs worthy of human dignity, and protecting this right is one of the fundamental duties of the social state. However, in countries where working in sweatshop conditions is common, this right is often violated. The study clarified the concept of sweatshop and the dimension of this concept in employment and developed an index that evaluates the working conditions of countries. The Sweat Index is an important tool for developing social policies that protect workers’ rights and guarantee humane working conditions. The findings of this index provide an important basis for improving social policies and labor standards internationally.