Fast fashion has been exponentially growing in popularity, especially amongst Gen-Z. You’re able to order cute, trendy clothes at a fraction of the price from other retailers. Celebrities promote brands such as Shein, H&M, and Fashion Nova. It’s affordable and convenient, yet at what cost?

The main reason for these inexpensive garments: Sweatshops. They are prominent in countless mainstream fashion brands today. The New York Post states how workers employed in sweatshops for Fashion Nova are paid as little as $2.77 an hour. Mercedes Cortes, a former worker, reports how she was paid about $270 a week and was awarded only “a few cents for each piece of a shirt she sewed at the factory.” In addition, she describes how “There were cockroaches. There were rats. The conditions weren’t good.” 

Another example - H&M, one of the largest fast fashion brands in the nation, also participates in the intolerable working conditions for employed people. The Guardian documents how H&M employs workers as young as fourteen years old in Myanmar factories, with a minimum wage of less than $3 a day. And according to The Cut, the average earnings for H&M factory workers in Bangladesh is a measly $0.49 an hour. 

Despite the insufferable conditions that workers in sweatshops face, these brands are promoted by influencers and celebrities all over social media, such as Cardi B and Kylie Jenner. The endorsement from these celebrities influences fans to perpetuate these fast fashion brands. 

We also need to take into account the detrimental environmental impacts because of fast fashion. The New York Times elucidates how over 60% of fabric fibers are made synthetic, meaning that once these garments enter landfills, they will not decay. Due to fast fashion’s cheap prices, they’re more prone to being disposed of quicker because of the mentality that they can be easily replaced. Furthermore, according to the Princeton Student Climate Initiative, it takes 3,000 liters of water to produce one cotton shirt, and “20% of the wastewater worldwide is attributed to this process…the wastewater created is extremely toxic…” 

Unfortunately, this doesn’t stop people from indulging in fast fashion. On TikTok, some users claim the consumer isn’t at fault for fast fashion's unethical working conditions. Others say that it is the only outlet for affordable clothing. So what should we do instead? Thrifting clothing is a cheap, ethical, and eco-friendly substitute. Shopping at reputable brands is a better alternative as well. 

It’s undoubtedly difficult to completely eliminate fast fashion from our lives. However, if we continue at this rate, our environment and ethicality for these workers will deteriorate rapidly. We no longer can disregard fast fashion’s dark side.