The underwear T-shirt brand Wei Sin (維新) may sound familiar to customers who attach great importance to the comfort and durability of their outfits, but few are aware that the shirts are all made in Chiayi Prison.
The brand distributes cotton T-shirts in retail outlets, as well as at prisons and correctional facilities nationwide — excepting Taichung Prison, which has its own production line.
The only difference between the products made available to non-prisoners and prisoners is that the former is sewn with a brand name label, while the latter also comes with a “place of origin” label.
Photo: Wu Shih-tsung, Taipei Times
Approximately 36,000 Wei Sin T-shirts were sold last year.
The brand started in 2001, when Chiayi Prison introduced sewing classes as part of its efforts to equip prisoners with job skills they could use after their release.
The small classroom was later expanded into two sewing factories. The prison then started a clothing brand and named it after the village where the factories are located — Wei Sin Village (維新新村).
The factories employ 300 inmates, who are paid NT$1,800 (US$60) a month for their labor. They also make uniforms for prison night guards and substitute military service members.
The combined annual output of the factories has reached about NT$21 million in value.
Chiayi Prison instructor Kao Fu-chun (高福君) said the factories’ No. 1 priority was to provide the inmates with an opportunity to learn employable skills.
“In the factories, prisoners are required to do everything by themselves, from cutting fabric and sewing the pieces together, to packaging and selling the finished products,” Kao said.
Kao said the factories used only locally made fabrics, with their short-sleeved products being made of 100 percent cotton and long-sleeved ones made of 55 percent cotton.
Despite the shirts being comfortable, a Chiayi inmate who spoke on condition of anonymity said he would never again put on a Wei Sin T-shirt after he was released from prison.
“It is bad luck to wear it,” he said.
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