a sweatshop disguised as a highly automated factory

[sethg_prime]

(Setting: AU resembling the contemporary northeastern USA

Comments

[xolo]

Even if you just kidnap illegal aliens and hold them prisoner on the premises, you still have to bring in food and dispose of sewage. That's going to be difficult to hide.

[lied_ohne_worte]

If they're prisoners, that would require staff and/or technical measures to keep them from escaping, as they would presumably rather tell the police about the place and get deported than stay in as slaves. And if they aren't prisoners, at some point someone will walk out and decide they can find a better job somewhere else rather than being shut in all the time, and that will eventually lead to rumours.

Also, someone will need medical attention at some point, which again will raise issues - even, if the factory owners have no scruples, if it's just disposal of corpses.

[thekumquat]

Could someone notice the multiple food deliveries, so they might have different stores deliver each week so it looks like the right amount for the staff, but when one driver moves to a different firm realises actually there's 5x the amount going in?
What are they producing? That would probably affect the level of inspection.

[tigerbright]

Willy Wonka did it!;)

[sethg_prime]

“Bill, I’ve got the Loompaland Ambassador on line two, and he sounds REALLY PISSED....”

[ap_aelfwine]

Glad I'm not the only one who had that as their first thought on seeing the post. :-)

[carmarthen]

I'm also not sure how an automated factory could be sold as revitalizing the local economy--more automation (or secret sweatshop labor) = fewer local jobs, which is what revitalizes economies, not creating goods that only profit the factory owner...

[lied_ohne_worte]

Well, except for business taxes, but AFAIK that's not that much of a thing in the US, compared to where I live.

[orange_fell]

Mod note: this is not a research or fact-checking question. Please edit your post to include a request for research assistance or personal experiences.

[tigerbright]

Apologies -- I saw that it was Seth's post and missed that it was to the community.

[orange_fell]

No worries, all good!