The Trading Game

1. S5 / S6 Induction“True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice.”Martin Luther King Jr. You can only protect your liberties in this world by protecting the other man's freedom. You can only be free if I am free. Clarence Darrow The Trading Game

2. What we’re hoping to achieve.. The main aims of today’s activities are as follows: • To encourage senior pupils to accept & embrace their position as seniors and therefore as role models who set an overall tone within the school community; • To demonstrate the importance of teamwork in achieving the best outcome for a group; • To illustrate the vital nature of good distributed leadership drawing on each individual’s strengths • To emphasise and raise awareness of issues of inclusion and social justice, and the duty of the Christian in bringing these about; • To add to pupils’ development as successful learners, responsible citizens, effective contributors and confident individuals, and to do so in the context of Gospel values; • To provide pupils with a fun but thought-provoking activity.

3. Okay…so here’s the deal… Each of your groups represents a country. As such, you represent that nation’s position in terms of its economy, workforce and technological standing. Each country starts out with the same amount of money – 1,000 Ninians. (100 McLaughlins = 1 Ninian) That’s fair. However, you don’t all same the same number of workers, or resources, or even the same working conditions. Your circumstances are not fair or just. We know that – so don’t bother complaining, because we won’t change them. We’re rich, and we plan to keep it that way. So… tough luck. And that’s real life.

4. And here’s what you have to do… Each country has to work to improve its economy through trading – in t-shirts. You must produce as many t-shirts – of merchantable quality – as possible. You will then be able to sell these to the traders at the bank. The more stylish, ornate, attractive (the t-shirts, not you!), the more you’ll get for them.

5. Blood, Sweat and T-shirts You are about to see a clip from the 4-part BBC3 documentary “Blood, Sweat and T-shirts”. In this programme, 6 young Brits who either work, or want to work, in fashion and/or retail go to India to see for themselves how it is that we can have British stores selling so many garments so cheaply. At this point in the programme, they have been told that, working in a sub-contracted sewing shop, they each have to produce 6 completed garments good enough to sell in the British market. They have 3 days to do the task. Each Indian worker has to produce 20 garments per day for a weekly wage of 200 Rupees – about £2.50. At the point where we take up the story, they are into their last day and have managed to produce 24 garments between them, although these have not yet been through quality control and the last batch that was checked (about 12 garments) was totally rejected.....

6. “Of merchantable quality…”??? Just look at our Quality Control Team. They are a skilful, discerning group of experts with exacting standards and a taste for the finer things in life. They are also as tough as old boots. Their rules are : • All t-shirts must be neatly cut along the outside of the black line. The line should be visible all round the t-shirt, but there should be no paper outwith the line. • Decorated t-shirts will be worth more than plain ones. • They will only buy t-shirts in bundles of 10. Any spares you have can be kept for the next shift or sold on to another country. If you do this, you negotiate your own price – but time is limited. • The final decision on how good a t-shirt is, and how much it is worth, will lie with the Quality Control Team. Look at them: style icons each and every one. Watch and learn, kids. • They can change their minds as and when they like. Fashion’s like that.

7. Money, money, money… Once the QCT have decided what your t-shirts are worth, you go to The Bankers. Tough, cold, hard-nosed business men and women who could make Danny Corbett look like a pussycat … You can try to negotiate with them, but I don’t think it will do you much good… Here’s how they work: • You’ll notice in your pack 3 sheets to do with money. The one that marks your running balance can stay at your desk: the others must be brought up each time you come to the bank. A banker will mark up your income and debits at the end of each shift. • The bankers will lend you money if you can persuade them that you have good reason to borrow, and that you can pay it back along with the 10% flat rate interest on all borrowings. • The bankers can sell you resources such as scissors, coloured pens, blank t-shirts, etc. They will decide on the price depending on how good a risk you are, the quantity you are buying, their mood, etc… • They can change their minds as and when they like. Banking’s like that.

8. Hints and Tips Some things to remember: • No nation is allowed to go bankrupt. If it looks as if this might be a possibility, you must borrow from the bank and pay that off before you can keep any profits. • All workers must be paid a minimum wage of 1 Ninian per shift – but you can negotiate for more! • At the end of each shift, any worker can apply to any other country to go and work there. They can only go if the other country agrees. Once there, they must get at least the minimum wage, but cannot demand the same wage as native workers if they are on a higher salary. • You don’t always have to trade with the bank: you can trade privately with the other nations. The bank / QCT rules will not apply. • Each country should choose someone (or a couple of people) who have the responsibility for keeping financial records up-to-date. Bankers can do spot checks at any time: you will be penalised if your records aren’t accurate.

9. Justice? “Speak up for people who cannot speak for themselves. Protect the rights of all who are helpless. Speak for them and be a righteous judge. Protect the rights of the poor and the needy.” Proverbs 31:8-9