Milwaukee Tool has repeatedly been in the news since last year, with reports about allegations that the company used forced prison labor in the production of work gloves.
Milwaukee has said that they do not tolerate the use of forced labor, and that their investigations did not find any evidence to support the allegations.
I learned about these allegations earlier than most people, and have been following the story since then.
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My Introduction to the Allegations
I first learned about the allegations from an interview request I received in February 2023. I replied, asking if they could provide some context or example questions.
After a brief exchange, the reporter said:
My questions are straightforward. I noticed that Milwaukee Tool’s product line of work gloves is new and expanding. Why do you think the company has decided to be a work gloves provider given there’ve been mature players in the market? What’s the thinking behind this? What do professionals/consumers think about the move and of course the Milwaukee-branded work gloves?
I wrote back with some background information and links to older posts. During a subsequent call, we talked at length about Milwaukee’s entrance into workwear, work gloves, and similar.
Abruptly, they asked for my opinion on forced political prisoner labor, and then brought up allegations that Milwaukee Tool was using prison labor to manufacture work gloves. We talked a little bit more, and then continued the conversation via email.
Despite the reporter’s deceptiveness, I spoke with them again. Did they have proof? No, just hearsay; they spoke to a prisoner who says the Milwaukee logo was seared into their memory. It seemed this was the basis for the allegations.
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Was it possible that they were making counterfeit gloves? I asked this from the start. The reporter acknowledged the possibility. Was there proof that the prison labor-made gloves were authorized? No.
There were other possibilities. Just prior to all of this, an anonymous short-seller produced a lengthy research report trashing Milwaukee Tool’s parent company. Hypothetically, what if the allegations were part of a different short-seller’s ploy to further impact TTI’s stock price? Bad news for the company could mean greater profits for short-sellers.
I started looking into things.
The Business & Human Rights Resource Center’s Investigation
I quickly found that the Business & Human Rights Resource Center had published a report on the allegations in December 2022, and invited Milwaukee Tool, Home Depot, Amazon, and Walmart to respond to the allegations.
I also found that the Business & Human Rights Resource Center had already received responses from both Milwaukee Tool and Home Depot on the matter, with both saying that they do not tolerate the use of forced labor.
I sent the Human Rights Resource Center an email, asking if their investigation was concluded, but they never responded.
Milwaukee and Home Depot Responses
Milwaukee’s response to the Business & Human Rights Resource Center reads (with line breaks added for easier readability):
Milwaukee Tool does not tolerate the use of forced labor. We have strict policies and procedures in place to ensure that no authorized Milwaukee Tool products are manufactured by using forced labor.
Milwaukee Tool only partners with suppliers that similarly commit to ethical labor practices throughout their supply chains, and who ensure that no forced labor is used. Milwaukee Tool regularly conducts a complete and thorough review of our global operations and supply chain.
A thorough investigation of these claims was conducted, and we have found no evidence to support the claims being made.
As we work to continue to deliver world class innovative solutions to the trades around the globe, we remain strongly committed to working with partners who exhibit ethical labor practices, and commit to our Code of Conduct and Policy Against Modern Slavery.
It seems that Milwaukee Tool already investigated and responded to the allegations months before the reporter was asking questions.
We prohibit the use of forced or prison labor in our supply chain. This is an issue we take very seriously, and we work closely with our suppliers to ensure the product we sell is free from forced labor and fully compliant with all applicable laws. We cover our ethical sourcing policy and actions in our annual ESG Report, which you can find here starting on page 38: (Home Depot 2022 ESG Report, PDF)
I Called Milwaukee
I spoke to a trusted contact at Milwaukee Tool, and they conveyed similar to what was in the official statement, that Milwaukee Tool does not use prison labor, and that after investigating the matter they found nothing to support the allegations against them.
Milwaukee Tool says they investigated and could not find any indication or evidence prison labor was used to make their work gloves, and the reporter I had spoken with also said there was no solid proof behind the allegations.
I thought everything was settled.
The Allegations Resurfaced
A few months later, a news story came out, saying that Chinese prisoners alleged they were making Milwaukee Tool work gloves.
There still wasn’t any proof or evidence, only word-of-mouth allegations.
I was unimpressed with the quality of the initial article, which I found to be incomplete and unfair. My sentiments could have been influenced by how the reporter blatantly lied to me in a manner that I felt compromised their journalistic integrity.
It’s possible for Milwaukee Tool to not tolerate the use of prison labor by their suppliers, and that the prisoner was not wrong about making work gloves with Milwaukee branding. I suppose that reporting on the possibility of counterfeits would have made for far less sensational headlines.
In their subsequent reporting, the same journalist made a direct connection between a Chinese supplier and “defective” Milwaukee-branded work gloves that were available for sale via an online marketplace in China.
The US Government Got Involved
A few months later, in July 2023, after the allegations attracted mass media attention, the US Congressional Executive Commission on China (CECC) wrote to Milwaukee Tool, asking them to answer several questions about the matter.
Some of the questions focused on Milwaukee Tool’s relationship with work glove manufacturer Shanghai Select Safety Products and its subsidiaries.
In October 2023, US CECC Chairman Christopher Smith, towards the end of an opening statement to a hearing on How Forced Labor in China Taints America’s Seafood Supply Chain, said the following:
Over the summer the Commission sent a letter to a Wisconsin-based company, Milwaukee Tool, regarding allegations that the company had purchased gloves from a supplier that was utilizing forced prison labor to make those gloves. Milwaukee Tool took action to investigate its supply chain, and I met with them last week.
They discovered multiple examples of counterfeit gloves originating in the PRC bearing their brand name. Part of that lawless behavior I spoke of includes ubiquitous unauthorized, counterfeit goods.
The upshot is that Milwaukee Tool has cut ties with the glove manufacturer in question, and they are moving that operation outside of China altogether.
I am deeply encouraged that the company has taken these positive steps, as it is yet another example of an American company responding constructively to reports of human rights abuses in the PRC.
This was the only statement from the US Congressional Executive Commission on China that I could find about their meeting with Milwaukee Tool, suggesting that it took place behind closed doors.
In my opinion, here are the biggest takeaways from the US CECC Chairman’s statement:
Milwaukee Tool took action to investigate its supply chain.
[Milwaukee Tool] discovered multiple examples of counterfeit gloves originating in the PRC bearing their brand name.
Milwaukee Tool has cut ties with the glove manufacturer in question.
It seems that the congressman, following whatever information was provided to the CECC, sees this as a case of “unauthorized, counterfeit goods.”
US Customs and Border Protection Action
In April, 2024, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency announced that they would detain imports of work gloves manufactured using prison labor, with Shanghai Select Safety Products Company and its subsidiaries being the subject of the Withhold Release Order (WRO).
The US CBP said:
Effective today, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel at all U.S. ports of entry will detain work gloves manufactured by Shanghai Select Safety Products Company, Limited and its two subsidiaries from China, Select (Nantong) Safety Products Co. Limited and Select Protective Technology (HK) Limited.
CBP issued a Withhold Release Order (WRO) against Shanghai Select Safety Products Company, Limited and its two subsidiaries Nantong and HK, based on information that reasonably indicates the use of convict labor in violation of 19 U.S.C. § 1307 in the production of that merchandise.
A New Lawsuit
NPR recently reported on a civil lawsuit against Milwaukee Tool, with the company being accused of having “knowingly benefited” from forced labor. Milwaukee told NPR “Despite rigorous investigations, Milwaukee Tool has found no evidence of forced labor in the production of our gloves” and has said the lawsuit is “without merit.”
The lawsuit names Shanghai Select Safety Products as a relevant party, and says the company is also known as Safety-INXS.
From the NPR article:
Milwaukee Tool also said it had terminated its relationship with INXS: “This decision was made independently from these allegations and reflects our company’s process to innovate and upgrade our glove offerings.”
The NPR reports that the new lawsuit:
alleges the company did not do enough to make sure its products were not tainted with forced labor.
The lawsuit (PDF via wpr.org, case no. 24-cv-803) is an interesting read. In Nature of the Action (part 1):
It is a well-documented fact that the manufacturing industry in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”) is riddled with the use of forced prison labor. Companies, including American companies, who outsource their manufacturing to the PRC often say their products are not tainted by such practices by touting their companies’ environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) practices.
The lawsuit also says (part 56):
[Milwaukee Tool] were well-aware of the risk that their supply chain would become tainted with the use forced labor before moving their production to the PRC.
This seems to suggest that the plaintiff is seeking damages based on the argument Milwaukee should have known their supply would be tainted with the use of forced labor, perhaps even in the absence of any evidence.
The lawsuit includes a consulting expert’s opinion on discovering forced labor practices, including (part 96 e):
have[ing] a process in place to detect unauthorized sub-contracting
It remains to be explained how Milwaukee Tool could have detected “unauthorized sub-contracting” or possibly the manufacture of counterfeit products (as referred to in the US CECC statement).
Has this Been Resolved?
Beyond Milwaukee’s official statements and assurances, the US Congressional Executive Commission on China seems satisfied with whatever information or details were shared with them in response to their official inquiry.
Following the meeting between the US CECC and Milwaukee Tool, US Customs and Border Protection announced a Withhold Release Order action against a Chinese supplier and its subsidiaries.
I have not yet seen any evidence that Milwaukee Tool is guilty of any wrongdoing, and from the US CESS statement, it seems that the allegations stemmed from the production of unauthorized or counterfeit products.
The question now, which the lawsuit might settle, is whether Milwaukee Tool is responsible for any unauthorized production that utilized forced prison labor.
We’ll update this post if or when more information is made available.
Jim Felt
Until European, Japanese and North American manufactures can compete on price and quality across the board with the Chinese (and I suppose soon enough India’s present day structure) no US marketing enterprise won’t face similar knockoff concerns.
I don’t see this issue changing in my/our lifetimes.
Always remember the US itself was once the low cost vendor in certain commodities to Mother England.
Kurt Vonnegut: “and so it goes”…
Brad
Maybe we consumers should boycott products made in countries that use forced labor to the greatest extent possible, whether or not those products were actually made with it.
Grokew
We must also fix our own prison labor issues. Especially if we are going to call out other countries, and companies for it.
While we get it fixed, let’s pay them at least the federal minimum wage, instead of pennies (That would also help reduce recidivism).
We also need to completely get rid of slavery, because as of now, it is still legal, as a punishment for crimes (prison labor).
“Constitutional Amendments – Amendment 13 – “The Abolition of Slavery”
“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude,
*Except as a punishment for crime…
DRT42
Prison labor issues? What the heck are you talking about? In my state, inmates haven’t stamped license plates for at least 20 years. Now they just lift weights and watch tv, while we pay $40k/year to keep them away from us.
Stuart
During the pandemic, it was widely reported that US prison labor would be making face masks and other such items.
Mike
Here is a photo on Threads of an inmate firefighter working the Park Fire in California this week. https://www.threads.net/@norcalstormchasing/post/C-b-GS3RKwU
John S
Prison labor is incredibly prevalent in nearly every state in the US.
PTBRULES
Honestly, everyone in jail should have a job, and classes to help them reintegrate into the workforce. If they are so dangerous that they can’t do that, we shouldn’t be releasing them in the first place.
If they earn a few dollars an hour that is then given to them upon release, or otherwise pays back their victims, thats fine.
People shouldn’t just be rotting in jail, that makes things worse.
Wayne R.
On the other hand, no corporation or otherwise should profit from such labor. That’s why it happens – someone’s making bank off it. That’s the secondary “benefit” from corporate prisons too.
Recently here in Colorado, it was on the ballot, to remove such language allowing slavery in the prison system from our constitution. It was not adopted.
I guess we’re crossing the “no politics” line here.
S
I work with a couple ex-inmates. While agree with your sentiment, the reality is far beyond that.
The premise of the judicial system is to punish and encourage reintegration into society, similar to what you said.
The reality is that any criminal conviction by society’s standards is a near death sentence to the individual. Jobs are harder to get, regardless of qualifications, which leads to a systemic cycle of people entering the prison system and performing the same actions again after leaving because society as a whole won’t allow them to reintegrate, leaving them moneyless, until they turn back to their old ways.
Changing societal perceptions would do the prison system far more good, but is far harder.
JoeM
*Plug Ears With Fingers* Lalalallalalalaaaaa Don’t care… Milwaukee is still on par with DeWALT as a respected tool company in my eyes. I am not going to say they are justified, or they can do no wrong. I will, however, stick to an axiom that my Late Father and I shared about Nike:
If other brands can make products that last as long, and function as intended, the way Nike does with their child labour, then we’ll have reason to pull our support from them. Until then, the product is better, however they’ve managed it, and the moral responsibility is on the other brands to step up their quality using their claimed morally-superior methods to change our stance on the company, or the products they make. Somehow Nike has managed to make more durable, longer lasting products out of child labour than their competitors. We don’t agree with how they’ve done that, we don’t support child labour, we would like very much to say our purchasing harms no one, but the fact remains the product is being produced at a far superior quality level, regardless of the also higher price point. Investing in a pair of Nike shoes you wear every day, will last you significantly longer by our many attempts at buying other shoes that fall apart in only a couple years. So, until medically necessary to switch to a specialty brand, or their competitor brands come up with products of equal long-lasting durability, we will never waver from our Nike shoes that we wear.
In this case, I may not buy Milwaukee, due to having a DeWALT ecosystem, but my respect and support of Milwaukee, and their products such as Packout and their Heated Gear have not, and will not, change or be diminished by any revelation of what labour they use to get these things produced. It is still up to the competitor brands to achieve what Milwaukee has with their products, demonstrating the same level of quality control and innovation using morally-upheld methods. I am aware of how amoral this decided axiom is, as I have held it for many decades of my life, as had my Father in his lifetime. However, due to the quality of the end products, we cannot, in good conscience, deny the quality end resulting products.
Brad
I wore a lot of Nike products as a college athlete, because those were what my college had. I assure you, they did not then, nor do they now, make more durable products. They’re flashy and well marketed, and that’s about it.
And ignoring human rights abuses for personal convenience is absurd.
Goodie
You lost me at the “child labor” axiom, which you admit is amoral. I find it incredibly immoral and will gladly buy the second-best product in support of human rights. In any case, it’s fairly clear from the investigation(s) that Milwaukee doesn’t want immoral labor as part of its’ supply chain.
An interesting corollary to this discussion is why brands like Milwaukee decide to go into clothing/fashion industry, where intellectual property is difficult to defend, there are rampant imitators, and the labor supply chain is notoriously difficult to manage.
The heated workwear seems like a natural fit, but the gloves seem like an incredible reputational risk for a company that carefully manages its’ reptutation.
blocky
If you truly don’t care, then this entire article and conversation is not for you, but it’s disingenuous to say that the moral obligation rests on competing companies. The moral obligation to not exploit is everyone’s obligation.
The burden of exploitation is initiated with people who choose to exploit, and that burden extends to anyone who contracts with them, and so on down the chain. The moral obligation to oppose exploitation also rests with anyone who understands that exploitation is abuse, and that it’s important not to enable or complicitly allow abuse to grow and continue.
Under no moral inquiry is anyone asking you to deny the quality of a market product. And there’s nothing intrinsic to any of Nike or Milwaukees offerings that requires exploitation as a resource.
I’m not saying what to believe and what to choose here. I’m just making a clarifying point about ‘moral obligation’.
MattT
That’s a lot of words to say “I’m fine with child labor and slave labor”.
What an abhorrent attitude.
BigTimeTommy
That’s some real goofy nonsense you said 👍
LK
I can sum this up for you pretty easily: “A lack of morals runs in my family.”
Mike
So you think if the quality is good and the price is right, you don’t care how it gets made? I guess you’re OK with children working in coal mines, factories, and slaughterhouses? How 19th century of you.
ToolGuyDan
“Do I agree with how Soylent Green is made? Of course not. But until someone brings to market something tastier…”
Cullen
This is gross. Slave labor is bad whether it produces a better product or a worse product.
Stuart
Joe…
Please tell me you didn’t really mean to suggest that you’re okay with the exploitation of vulnerable groups as long as it benefits you.
JoeM
Nope… I’m glad you asked directly like this, it lets me answer everyone at once, and address their concerns… Because my Father and I Did have this discussion at the time. We didn’t originally Know about the child labour issues with Nike until the mid-late 1980’s. By then we had each owned Nike shoes that had lasted longer than any other brand we had tried. Yes, I was a young child, so I went through a lot of shoes due to size changes. However, my Father had owned Nike shoes since the 70’s, and found he was only buying new ones once every decade since the last purchase. This continued through the early 2000’s for both of us, before both of us ended up switching to other brands like Sketchers for their wider, or more padded soles.
The discussion on this matter was not us being okay with whatever suited us best. Neither of us ever chose to support child labour, and this was long before the “Sneakerhead” movement that jacked up all the flashy variants of Jordans and Nike shoes. I have not worn Nike shoes since at least 2009-ish. However. Whenever my Father or myself tried a cheaper or more labour-friendly brand, we ended up wearing through them within a year or two. I was a Scout, he was a Security Officer, and we lived for a long time in areas where we both did a lot of walking every day. Shoes got worn through, or fell apart, long before we would be tired or injured. With one exception. Nike. Whatever they were doing, they were lasting for us. High Tops, Sneakers, Trainers… Whatever shoe we bought that had the Nike Swoop, the real one, would withstand a good decade with us both. And I keep saying both because, as Father and Son, we tended to have the same kind of walk pattern. So we would wear shoes out in a similar way, every time.
So the result of this on-the-ground (literally) experience with many shoe products, kept pushing us back to Nike for how long they lasted. Considering they were always going between $80-$150 CAD from the 1980’s-2000’s, when Converse, Adidas, and every other brand we tried, were going between $40-$90 CAD in the same time frame, we didn’t like the price range we were paying, nor did we like the news that we were supporting a company with failed ethics. However… We didn’t have a whole lot of money with Dad working in Security, and even when I was making a huge amount as a Computer Tech, it was all going toward saving for College… We had to be able to trust the long-lasting investment in footwear. So we always swore, the second a different brand made shoes that could last a decade or more, regardless of price range, and could prove they weren’t using child labour… We would stick to our Nikes. Medically though, both my Father and I developed foot problems from all the walking we did in those years. Nike would no longer support our feet anymore, as mine became flat and very wide (EEE width, FYI.) and his started to ache due to his age, we switched to Sketchers. We obeyed our beliefs about Nike, that we found a shoe that was better suited to our feet, and thus abandoned Nike in a heartbeat. I used to have original RED Converse All-Stars… My Grandmother bought them for me, because suddenly kids all around her were wearing Converse All-Stars, she knew my size at the time, and she went to the Mall and bought a pair in my size right off the shelf. Dropped $200 on them, no questions asked, except “Why are these $200, when all the other identical ones, in other colours, even Black, just $75?” (Jewish Grandmother, of course.) And it was because the Red ones were a Limited-Edition shade of that model. She shrugged, and gave them to me anyways to try out.
How long did those Limited-Edition Converse All-Stars last? If you’re a Sneakerhead, you might want to cover your eyes, because these have gone for tens of thousands in auction, untouched… But mine lasted on my feet A Month… They looked good, they could’ve used a little more padding for the feet, but I liked them… But they were total garbage. Putting me back into Nikes.
So my argument is simple: When someone proves to be, not just capable, but Superior, to the Quality and Engineering of Milwaukee Tools? Forcing Milwaukee to utterly remove every trace of every item ever made with questionable ethics in the labour force? Then I’ll care how Milwaukee makes their quality lineup. I’m already not invested in Milwaukee, but I do, regularly, speak highly of them. And will continue to do so, regardless of this controversy. I’m personally, already divested. But Morally, even above my native DeWALT ecosystem, Milwaukee still holds my respect and admiration for the sheer diversity and quality of their entire product line. A Scandal won’t change that. Because I could, today, walk up to a friend’s Milwaukee Tools, or Packout System, beat the snot out of it, drop it from heights it’s not designed for, run it over with a heavy vehicle, and it will maintain its original Milwaukee quality and standards of operation… Though, it might be dirtier than before. So Milwaukee is finalizing their products in such a way that these Scandals don’t change my opinion that they are a good company. Worth the investment for those who love them, and that this does not diminish them as being Milwaukee Tools.
True to this belief system my Late Father and I held about Nike, my Brand Loyalty ends at a point when the Morality and Pricing can be circumvented to where the Scandal is no longer relevant. When I went to much wider shoes, they’re not Nike. When my Father had a kidney problem that made one leg swell well beyond any shoe size and he required custom footwear, it wasn’t by Nike. Nike left our family usage so long ago, that the new “Sneakerhead Editions” that sell for thousands, and are never worn, are not an issue at all. Because we (Now just I, since he passed away.) only buy what fits, and the price holds up well versus the budget. And it was a competitor to Nike that proved itself worthy for both of us to switch out to them at the time. Sketchers, as much as people hate how “ugly” they may be, fit, and are comfortable. They also last a long time, and the question of Nike is no longer there. No money is going to Nike anymore, because someone else came along and created something better, both ethically, and through Quality Control.
I don’t like forced labour or slavery any more than anyone else does. Considering my heritage on both sides, I am extremely sensitive to the abuses of human beings in the world. But it took 25-30 years for someone to come along and replace Nike for us. We’re just discovering this aspect of Milwaukee’s workforce recently, and if Capitalism remains as it is, I expect a similar wait time until Milwaukee can fully purge this from their lineup, making their products still the quality and variety that we’ve always known Milwaukee to be, and that level has been up near the top for a very long time. If this is the secret they’ve been hiding, then… Well, in this case there’s already DeWALT and ToughBuilt waiting in the wings to buy instead. If you truly want to pull your money out of Milwaukee, there’s already tried, tested, and true alternatives, unlike my Father and I’s issues with Shoes for so long. So consider that a blessing in this particular case, as you have 100% valid options already. We didn’t. And I choose to trust Milwaukee as I have. Not “Well it gets the job done” but rather… It’ll get fixed, and I trust them to do so. I’m already a DeWALT person, so there’s nothing I can do, or say, to divest myself from Milwaukee. Unlike the Nike conflict, there’s nothing pushing me to Milwaukee when DeWALT fails. One, because DeWALT hasn’t failed for me, and Two, my models of tools are old enough that if something breaks, it’s worth the investment in the modern, enhanced, versions. So Milwaukee will still get spoken of in the same high regard I hold DeWALT, but I have no money to divest from them.
Shane
Wow! Just wow. I read a news article about this before reading here. It pointed out the convoluted nature of supply chains. There’s no middleman…there are many. I think most companies do some degree of due diligence to confirm their products integrity for the sake of their brand reputation alone.
Being flippant about the means of production regarding forced labor comes off as pretty cold but that’s the exact attitude in the boardroom and on Wall Street. Shareholders cashing their dividend checks don’t care how it got there. Welcome to late stage capitalism.
I think it’s revolting to knowingly profit from forced labor and if Milwaukee is proven culpable, I will change brands. Considering how much I have invested in the brand, it will hurt me infinitely more than them. Taking a stand almost always comes at a high economical/psychological loss. It’s much easier not to care, However, some things are not OK or acceptable.
Stuart
The list of people I have spoken to at Milwaukee Tool keeps growing, and some of these relationships go back many years. No one I know – or think I know well – would be okay with forced labor being used to produce their products.
Goodie
I’m willing to take them at their word on this. We also have investigations and the pending trial that might produce compelling evidence. I am still fairly interested to see how this influences brands that are moving into clothing DeWalt, Milwaukee, or license into clothing (Cat). They may rethink that based on the reputational risk associated with clothing/textiles that I mentioned above. That industry is rife with supply chain risk, fakes, and labor issues.
JR Ramos
Well, I mean it’s true that these things happen quite frequently in all sorts of factories and even smaller businesses…..there has been a lot of change and I wouldn’t say it’s the norm, but it still happens a lot. China, Vietnam, Malaysia, really a lot in India still. So common that we do have these laws now and watchdog groups and best practices for corporations that operate or contract with risk zones. Whether they knew or didn’t or could whitewash it away with “no credible evidence” doesn’t really change a lot in the end and whether or not they switched manufacturers won’t necessarily make the practice diminish further. Very much a cultural thing and very much a government thing, just a very different world than what we live in here and expect.
“It remains to be explained how Milwaukee Tool could have detected “unauthorized sub-contracting” or possibly the manufacture of counterfeit products…..”
There are practices and recommendations, corporate policies….some take it seriously and some don’t. A business should have someone inspecting their fire extinguishers and smoke alarms every month, operation of fire doors, gauge operation, annual inspections for the system and such and such…..it’s the same thing except more vetting and visiting should take place before and during the partnership. Probably only Milwaukee knows if they did that “enough” and “correctly” unless those details come out in pleadings.
From small examples that I am aware of, if/when this sort of thing happens, they make it extremely difficult to detect and with any visit there is quite a dog and pony show beforehand to put on the best face…manner and mechanisms can be pretty elaborate. What I learned about a couple of flashlight manufacturers was quite different than what we were able to see in some (neat and lengthy) video tours of their businesses/factories. Nobody ever wants to admit to not being the kindest happiest most generous company that does all the right things to make the world a great place, so the truth may remain hidden and everyone in the middle will also try to minimize their connection or responsibility/liability. As long as somebody in charge finds it acceptable, it’ll continue, and sometimes we can’t really do a lot about it. Import bans don’t solve it because there will always be customers/contractors who do not care, unfortunately. There are corollaries to US history with slaves – a great many people didn’t agree but either accepted the status quo to their benefit or complied out of fear/obligation or whatever reasons people have for treating others so very poorly. That attitude of “better than” is still very prevalent around the world even if it doesn’t always show up in such blatant action.
Stuart
A few years back, a fraudster contacted a knife company and was trying to say they worked for ToolGuyd in order to get a free product. The company reached out to me, asking if it was legit because everything smelled funny. I said no, it’s not. How was I supposed to detect fraudulent activity like that?
If a supplier has illicit off-site production that exploits prison labor, with such activities purposefully masked from factory visits or audits, how can that be identified or detected?
JR Ramos
That’s bizarre and crappy! Not much you could do there other than maybe spell things out with something like, “all requests would come from me and only me” or “confirm with me and only me first” or something…but for you, I mean why bother, right? With a supply chain and supplier relationship that is ongoing and involves dozens or hundreds of employees, things change a lot. Like I said, some companies choose to do it on more than a perfunctory “statement” level, some don’t, but it still happens either way. And yes…if the activity is concealed then…well, then you end up exactly where we are now and have been for many years now. The charades with Apple and Dell and Foxconn in China and India are a great larger scale example (and Nike and others too). My point here was that, assuming everything is on the up and up and Milwaukee is truthful and did do what they are “supposed” to, then it can still happen and Milwaukee can still get left holding the bag, and people probably shouldn’t lynch them for it but will anyway due to a lack of understanding of the big picture and a failure to grasp the large differences in cultures and/or government which is other than our own.
As I read details of this glove factory worker last year and more in depth earlier this year (and some other things earlier, especially the Mongolian workers in far west China) it’s just terrible. The way the Chinese government (and Chinese people to a large degree) treat some others is abhorrent – actually worse than the still existing caste system in India. I don’t embrace or selfishly ignore any of it but I won’t let myself get terribly worked up over it either…try to make smart choices in supporting companies/products, stay off the boycott wagon until it’s known that someone was nefarious. I do feel very badly for a lot of the “average” cheap-human-robot factory workers in many places (who are not overtly mistreated and not harsh prison labor)…it’s a pretty meager and unfulfilling existence even when the place might have ventilation or hvac and when the work might be slightly more challenging or interesting.
It’s good to investigate and call out the really bad practices, though. We’re all paying a bit more for most things made in China than we used to 7-8 years ago, but I’m fine with that since the majority of it actually does come from some better wages and conditions for a great many workers over there…still a huge disparity though, which the world will continue taking advantage of, unfortunately.
JR Ramos
One other point to note is that for many reasons – this issue being one of them – some companies that have moved overseas have decided to build and run their own operations, or they enter into contracts with an existing factory that more or less seals their business. That takes some of the mystery or subcontracting out of the equation but it’s far more expensive to do so. The benefit is usually better quality control but also some appreciable insulation from labor issues and such. Milwaukee is so big and varied, they have both of these scenarios playing out around the globe (and probably other scenarios as well). Subcontracting has been an issue in some industries, where you contract with one factory but they sneakily have some other outfit do the work for cheaper and never tell the customer…possibly something similar was happening here with the gloves.
Stuart
That was with a knife/tool brand I never heard of before.
It prompted this post – https://14cyiuhvcgv.com/beware-fraudulent-review-sample-requests/%3C/a%3E .
BigTimeTommy
It would be easy to just avoid Milwaukee tool but quite frankly I just assume every major manufacturer is using exploited labor or outright slave labor somewhere down the line. I definitely don’t believe Milwaukee/TTi when they say “We here at Milwaukee don’t like bad things. We looked into the allegations and decided we aren’t doing anything wrong 😉😘”
Eliot Truelove
That definitely leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
Of course no company will admit to using slave labor, but even a statement such as this would go a long way:
“While we are unaware of the truth of these allegations, we will conduct a thorough investigation and invite third party inspections of our all of our factories and third party suppliers within China. This is a practice we will not tolerate and want to root out”.
This would show a measure of accountability and transparency so it all seems above board corporate-wise, even if rogue bottom rung factories were doing their own thing.
The corporate structure and advertising of Milwaukee though seems so predatory to me, and the rumours amongst former employees being incentivized to drive around to home depots and keep the displays in tip top shape and being squeezed tight to the point of burnout seem hard to ignore when they keep resurfacing on sites like Glassdoor and the Milwaukee tool and Milwaukee City subreddits. The few I’ve come across read like a MLM scheme.
Don’t get me wrong, while I have not been a fan of Milwaukee 18v tools, I do have a 12v pin nailer and use their Packout system and various accessories and hand tools. Every 12v tool I’ve used I seem to like and on its own merit would justify much of the Milwaukee reputation.
The abysmal Repairability of the tools though can’t help me feeling that they are disposable in nature, and when things are disposable in nature, you can easily make the mental leap of them being made with poor quality control and/or prison labor.
In 5 months a guy I work for has had 3 batteries, 2 multitools, a drill, and an impact die on him, all Milwaukee. He writes them into the job. If they were repairable I’d offer to take them, but for now they go from window sill to floor to shelf along with miscellaneous boxes of screws and niche tools.
He’ll use my tools too, especially when his aren’t on hand, and he hasn’t broken any of mine or bricked any of my batteries, so I don’t think it’s user error.
There’s just a lot to be said for having a “crap on all other brands” advertising and corporate mentality, and I’m nowhere near confrontational to find that at all appealing.
Stuart
I haven’t heard rumors like that at all.
I’ve met a couple of local and regional reps at Home Depot stores, and they all LOVED their jobs with huge passion.
I’ve met some Dewalt reps that also seemed extremely happy to do what they’re doing.
Rx9
To be honest, prison and child labor is something I asssumed is a part of the supply chain for everything made outside the first world. I’m more surprised by the news that someone is suppoedly trying to stop it, which I sincerely doubt. I think this is more about someone trying to make a quick buck shorting, or more likely a PR hit called in to protect a substantially leveraged short position.
JR Ramos
There have been pushes to “fix” this in various industries since the 1980s. I think it mostly started with clothing and textiles, but it has been across the board. I think the internet really helped, so to speak, as it became easier to disseminate factual photos and information to spread the word. In the news over the last almost-decade it has been mostly things like electronics assembly and coffee plantation workers, etc.
JR
Dance with the devil and expect to get burned.
Jared
I’m a bit surprised with the comments. Did this article not basically say:
“Someone accused Milwaukee of using forced labor. There doesn’t appear to be any corroborating evidence. The allegations may actually apply to a counterfeiter.”
If Milwaukee is using forced labor, that’s bad. We consumers should be upset. If someone accused Milwaukee of using forced labor to manipulate stock prices, that’s also bad – but it’s not Milwaukee we should be mad at.
If it turns out someone is lying to drive stock values down (basically stealing from investors and, in a roundabout way, affecting pricing for consumers) for personal gain, it doesn’t feel appropriate to react with “well, Milwaukee might be doing that” or “it’s not true but Milwaukee does other things I don’t like”.
Ultimately it means you’ve heard no news either way. Piling on could be helping a dishonest person succeed to rip people off.
MM
Exactly.
Stuart
It doesn’t seem like short-sellers were spreading rumors, but that was one of the possibilities I thought of when trying to resolve two typically mutually exclusive positions.
It seems a supplier – active or former – was engaged in unauthorized production.
Maybe the gloves were sold in bulk to end up in online marketplaces like Walmart or Amazon where authorized dealers are not permitted to sell Milwaukee products. Were they mixed into authorized production inventory?
There still hasn’t been any proof or evidence that Milwaukee was in-the-know, or any public indication that unauthorized or counterfeit products were mixed into inventory sold here.
I read a news story yesterday – ” COMPANY DID HORRIBLE THINGS – say new unsupported allegations.” And then other media channels will pick it up and circulate until it becomes “Company did horrible things.”
In my opinion, the news stories were tainted from the beginning – I will forever distrust the reporter and publication that thought it fit to lie about the nature of an interview and manipulate sources. They got their 15 minutes of fame, I hope it was worth it.
Michael F
First, how were the gloves counterfeit if Milwaukee tool had a relationship with the company producing them to terminate? What I mean is, if Milwaukee tool had a relationship with the supplier to terminate at all, wouldn’t that indicate that the gloves were not, in fact, counterfeit?
You only need a slight understanding of how China works internally to break down this story. Milwaukee suppliers more than likely DID use forced labor to make gloves, which is an incredibly common practice in China. Milwaukee likely didn’t know about the forced labor, conducted internal investigations, and cut ties with the supplier. Afterward, they rebranded the gloves “counterfeit” more as a marketing and PR move to indicate that the LABOR, and not the gloves, were unapproved.
Do I have proof for any of this? Of course not, but you don’t need to have a massive intellect to figure it out. As Sherlock Holmes used to say, it’s elementary.
Second, just buy Mechanix. I’ve used multiple pairs from Milwaukee and they’re simply inferior.
Jared
I’m all aboard the Milwaukee hate train if these allegations turn out to be true. I’m not enthused about jumping on now.
Your theory is plausible, but so is the official explanation. As you admitted, you don’t have any proof. Why is the default position: blame Milwaukee?
The story doesn’t end with the allegations either. Further investigation didn’t corroborate them and revealed both an alternate explanation and a motive for advancing a false narrative.
I think it’s too early to condemn Milwaukee.
Michael F
To be clear I’m not condemning Milwaukee and I don’t believe Milwaukee was ever aware of forced labor while ongoing. I just don’t doubt that it happened anyway, which is part of the problem with doing business in China right now.
MM
One problem/scam which I’ve heard often happens with production subcontracted to China goes like this: A western company contracts a Chinese manufacturer to make goods for them…could be tools, purses, toys, electronics, whatever. The manufacturer makes significantly more product than the original contract called for. They fulfill the contract and they now have a bunch of product that could be described as perfect fakes because they came from the exact same production line as the real merchandise. They then go on to sell that surplus through grey market channels.
I.e. let’s say someone orders 10,000 knives from a contractor in China. They might make 20k instead, ship 10k to the original customer in the USA, while selling the rest to various 3rd parties.
I’m not saying that’s what happened here but that is an example of how one could end up with product that is simultaneously “counterfeit” and originates from a company with a prior relationship.
Anyway, I do agree your theory is extremely plausible, even likely. It’s very believable that Milwaukee contracted glove production to someone in China who then subcontracted some of the work to another party, etc, and somewhere among all those layers of onion there is forced labor. But, I don’t believe that Milwaukee would have done that knowingly, and I don’t think it’s right to blame Milwaukee for the actions of a subcontractor, especially not with the absence of any proof.
JR Ramos
That absolutely happens – a lot. Some of that depends on OEM vs ODM factories and it can often be controlled by contracts (but sometimes contracts are not honored or rogue actions will be concealed over overlooked…). I would assume that Milwaukee is pretty smart and specific about this in their business contracts but there’s no reason they couldn’t be snubbed, especially for widespread items like gloves where there isn’t as much of a cornered market or special items unique to a brand.
This is exactly how the vast majority of individual li-ion round cells are available for sale, btw. Samsung and others have really clamped down on the market but they haven’t completely been able to snuff it yet. That’s why many of the Chinese cells have been much more available and prevalent in the last several years (Molicel and Eve being popular examples…they have good products and were hungry for the business, so they capitalized on Samsung’s restrictive practices and wholesalers took the bait).
Michael F
Yep, totally agree with all your points here. I’m not suggesting that at any point Milwaukee was aware of forced labor. It’s too damaging to the brand to even risk it.
Alexk
What a tough subject. Child, prison and any exploitive workplace makes me want to boycott a company. If I find out about it, I would not buy from them. BUT….how many times do I buy on an almost daily basis, products made by exploited people?
I try as best I can, but when business and corporations exist for the bottom line which is to make as much money as possible, workers will be exploited.
I’m writing this before I had my coffee, so I might have to amend this response.
It can be easy for someone to make a choice to boycott some products, but with my budget, I can’t afford to buy only products made from great companies that are fair to everyone in the supply, mfr and retail chain. Current example is needing work pants. I really would like to buy Blaklader or similar, and I believe the companies do the right thing. But $120 for one pair is hard for me. Wranglers at Walmart is around $24 and last me well over a year.
For those in the trades, who is making every light switch, screw, pipe etc. ? Is it possible to buy anything that hasn’t some form of exploitation in how it was made?
What do any of you do, if anything?
Stuart
Not all businesses will maximize profit at all costs.
Alexk
I would love to see a list of businesses that adhere to that, so I can choose better in where I spend my money.
ToolGuyDan
A “B Corporation” is what you’re looking for. Whereas the officers of most companies are legally obligated to pursue profit at any cost, a B Corp is a *for-profit* organization that is legally obligated to pursue social goods (e.g. environmental health, worker welfare, etc.) alongside profit.
Alexk
Thank you, ToolGuyDan. That info gives me something to research.
IndianaJonesy (Matt J.)
Not remotely tool-related, but I saw a lovely interview of the founders of Arizona teas that speaks to their values on this. By no means my favorite drinks or anything, but found a new respect for them as a company.,
eddiesky
I saw your reply in the last Milwaukee post, Thank you for this Stuart!
I suspect its plausible that the Chinese prisoners aren’t making this up, and that we all know how China, the PRC and its “company aggreements” with others…its their culture to steal. IP or otherwise. They don’t see it as stealing…they see it as practical and sustaining. I don’t blame their people, since half are secret police and military, and the farmers gave up rice for enslavement to 18hr factory work. Along with the notion that the Chinese will make knockoffs, and don’t care about the real product.
And I bet Milwaukee is lied to all the time, but has to posture. That is until it gets manufacturing setup elsewhere like Burma, Laos, Vietnam and other non-Chinese controlled countries in East Asia. All about cheap labor and profits.
BTW, I had a pair of work gloves…they were the Impact ones…not sure brand but they barely last a year. All I do is some truck work, wood splitting in the Fall, and menial tasks.
I think workgloves need to last a few years. I’ve a pair of Bear Wallow Goat skin ranch gloves and after breaking in with leather conditioner, they are literally a second skin. Maybe not a protective as Mechanix Impact, but those Mechanix and similar just don’t last.
Thanks again for this thorough write up! I suspect reporters are more Yellow Journalism as of late… who remembers Point- Counterpoint?
Stuart
Most of the articles absolutely seemed lurid to me.
As you say, articles across the board seem like yellow journalism these days, and that’s because various algorithms reward it, leading to clicks and ad revenue.
MM
If you need some tough work gloves I highly recommend Geier Gloves no. 448 or 748. There are no fancy logos or decoration, just seriously good quality USA made leather. They require very little care, I give mine a rub with some Nick’s boot dressing maybe once a year. The dexterity is not as good as mechanix gloves but the hand protection is on a whole other level.
I learned about them when I was complaining to the salesman at my local farmer’s co-op after the previous set of gloves they had suggested to me failed after 4 months despite costing $30. An old-time rancher butted into the conversation, told me to forget about anything on the rack there and recommended the Geiers. According to him those were the only gloves good enough for working with barbed wire. I’m no rancher but that sounded like good praise so I ordered a pair and I’ve been super happy with them. After a few years I finally wore a hole in one of the thumbs. Normally I’d have thrown them out and bought a new pair, but the advantage of gloves like this they can be easily repaired, just like quality leather shoes or boots can be. I made a patch from some leather scrap I had lying around, skived the edges with a razor and glued it on with E6000, then sewed it down. I’ve been using them for over a year since the patching and there’s no signs of it failing or any problems elsewhere with the gloves.
JR Ramos
Goat skin gloves are fantastic…good ones. I hate all the rubber and crap on most gloves (and will try to remove them when I can). Check out the Ranchworx/Cowboy models, and the Caiman brand (excellent and the ones with kevlar overlays are fantastically durable while staying dextrous…is dextrous a word?). Youngstown has a couple of good fabric-backed goatskin models, too…love those.
JR Ramos
Mechanix had some that I absolutely loved, real leather, but they discontinued them and frankly whatever synthetic leather they’re using the last many years is just crap if there’s any abrasion involved. They don’t fit as nicely anymore either.
A W
Thanks for the nuanced perspective on this, Stuart. I appreciate your skepticism.
Stuart
Thanks, I appreciate that!
Farkleberry
So in Oct 2023, Smith of CECC announces Milwaukee has cut ties with a glove manufacturer.
Then in April 2024 CBP issues WRO against Shanghai Select.
Was this shipment an order going to licensed Milwaukee dealers?
Can we get some confirmation from Milwaukee?
Farkleberry
If I can summarize my limited understanding:
Everyone knows slave labor is rampant in China.
Milwaukee and others know there is also cheap non (semi?) slave labor in China, and consumers love all the cheap, often reasonable to high quality goods it produces.
No reputable, established and profitable company wants the bad press and lawsuits from KNOWINGLY using slave labor. Some companies are probably ok with plausible deniability should they get caught maximizing profits with slave labor. Temu and obvious counter fits are probably fine with slave labor and understand the risks.
There are roughly 3 types of counterfeits:
1. Same exact item – same design, materials, made in same factory – but sold through non official channels. If a company can’t buy all 3, sorry 2, shifts of a factory’s output before switching lines (or if the factory has some ready buyers), they will sell the exact same, seconds, or lower spec’ed items out the back door.
2. Same design with some or all OEM components assembled in a different factory.
3. “Reverse engineered” knockoff that hopefully fools untrained eye from outside but shares few to no components with OEM, and is in fact a slightly different design. Almost invariably produced in a different factory from OEM.
In China, communist party officials get rich through bribes, then their families get rich buying companies that may or may not use slave labor or sell counterfeits. The government basically has an official policy to enslave religious and ethnic minorities and political dissidents. They send them out west, and if reporters or private auditors write critical reports, they are imprisoned or disappear.
Elsewhere the threat of imprisonment or worse to the client’s inspectors and auditors is less obvious. Here, factories and bribed officials will often go to great lengths to delay, obfuscate and deceive the client’s inspectors and auditors.
A real problem is that, as long as no reporters or lawyers can get hold of credible claims, it’s often in the interest of the client, their inspectors, the factory and the government (officials and as a whole) to use the cheapest labor possible, sometimes being forced.
I think it’s easy to argue that it is, in fact, impossible to perform due diligence against forced labor in China, especially for non serialized goods. Especially when there is often no recourse available once slave labor “counterfeit” goods are identified.
Nathan
Sorry but if your outraged over this and now outraged at the honey or garlic or other groceries you buy or any no name thing from Amazon then you should be ashamed of your selective outrage
If it’s made in China most likely somewhere along its path to you prison labor touched it. There’s videos of garlic being peeled and or diced in the prisons. Honey farma and the mixing plant run inside a prison. Pick anything else made in China and there is a good likely hood the same. Mining. Nearly any mining in China is prison labor or prison labor is involved.
Milwaukee got caught. Gee. Surprised Ridgid and others didn’t too. And that includes SBD
Sorry not surprised in the least. Yes I’m a label checker. No often I can’t avoid made in China. Yes it’s sad.
928'er
I suspect the “Milwaukee” gloves were counterfeit. The chinese will counterfeit any and everything.
I got a counterfeit “Shimano” bicycle chain from an ebay seller. Aside from the fact that it was the wrong spec for the chain I’d ordered, the only giveaways were a slight discrepancy in the font and line spacing on the packaging. The market is absolutely flooded with chinese counterfeit SKF and NTN bearings.
Shane
Would you be ok with your children being a link in the supply chain?
https://abcnews.go.com/amp/US/despite-hazardous-working-conditions-states-rolling-back-child/story?id=107209273