T-Shirt Math

Think about a t-shirt that is sold in Canada for about $20. This shirt is
manufactured by an international corporation at one of its factories in
Honduras. This factory is one example of a maquiladora (pronounced:
mah-kee-lah-DOH-rah)which is a foreign-owned factory that assembles
goods for export.

The Honduran workers producing the shirt were paid $0.56 an hour. On
average, a worker is able to sew approximately 4.7 shirts per hour.

Using the information above, calculate the following:

How much does a worker receive per t-shirt?_______ $0.12

In 2014, Honduran trade unions calculated that to support a family at a

bare-subsistence level, it would take approximately two times the wages
provided by the maquiladora.

If a Honduran workers wages were doubled, how much would they

make per hour?_______ $1.12

How much would they earn per t-shirt?_______ $0.24

If the company passed on this increased cost to the consumer, how

much would a t-shirt cost? $20.24

Now imagine that a workers wages were increased by ten times.

What would be their hourly rate?_______ $5.60

How much would they earn per shirt?_______ $1.19

If the company passed on this increased cost to the consumer, how

much would you pay for the t-shirt?_______ $21.07
Inquiry Questions

1. The clothing manufacturer sells its goods in Canada, yet

manufactures them in Honduras. Why do you think this is the
case?

2. Would you be willing to pay more for a shirt if that meant that
workers in another country were getting higher wages? How much
more? Do you think most people in the United States would be
willing to do so? Why or why not?