The Worker Rights Consortium has calculated that for $3 billion total, every factory in Bangladesh could be renovated and updated to meet basic safety standards, preventing such tragedies.

Updates would include construction of proper fire exits or fire escapes, as well as installation of emergency lighting, safety equipment, and electrical rewiring. Recent events have demonstrated the devastation and death that are inevitable when factories do not have these safeguards.

There is an estimated 7 billion individual garments imported every year from Bangladesh. A mere 10 cent tacked on to the price of each garment would generate $700 million a year – more than enough revenue to cover these necessary factory updates.

National Consumer League