The “Eastern European” carwash

There have always been many excuses for slavery, and there have always been ways of justifying what goes on by telling oneself it’s a better alternative than leaving the slaves to starve, or that it’s good that they have useful work.

I’m sure a lot of the plantation owners in the southern states of America said the same things. Their slaves were always cheerful too

These people have to start somewhere. Very difficult though. At least they are earning something not begging or thieving. A lot of societies think they need cheap labour for the menial stuff. Hence immigration and slavery. Is it better to have car washes or give some employment to people at the lower end of the economic spectrum?
In Victorian times you could go to the workhouse and get a scullery maid and give her work a roof over her head and a sense of belonging. Now they are dumped in high rise flats that are a fire risk.
No I don't want to go back to the workhouse era but it is food for thought.

My local supermarket has a group of men who will wash your car whilst you shop, it only costs £5! I have never used them simply because I do wonder whether they are being exploited, but on the other hand I feel guilty as they may suffer for not bringing in enough cash for the owners.

We have a back street car wash run by Eastern Europeans, other than the boss, the cleaners change regularly.
A group of African men set up in one of our underground carparks. There were usually two cleaners and one man who watched, then collected the £15 for a full valet. The cleaners were always friendly, with little if any English. The first couple of times I used it, I'd chat and ask which part of Africa they were from but that led to them looking at the boss person over their shoulders. I realised that despite seeming to be an officially approved business in an NCP car park, they were in all likelihood illegal immigrants, or in fact enslaved to whoever had helped them get into the country.
I stopped using the scheme, which disappeared about a month ago. I wonder if the police had anything to do with it shutting down.
It's a real B isn't it, that exploitation like this continues. In reality though, given the war torn countries these men were trying to escape from, hardly surprising.

But this link shows the reality. If they’re that cheap they’re cheap for a reason. The workers in the link were described as being always very cheerful too, but they didn’t have their passports and one lost his life. Are we simply closing our eyes because it suits us, whilst asking for statues and names of those who benefited from the slave trade in previous times to be removed? Are we hypocrites?

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/slaves-on-our-streets-hand-car-wash-exploitation-london-undocumented-workers-a7994151.html?amp

Surely the car wash operations have to comply with local licensing laws? (and whatever checks go along with that). I doubt anyone can just set up shop and install the equipment and start trading...

Some of these “cash only” businesses are definitely a front for money laundering if not people trafficking. A car wash near me was recently raided and discovered to be offering “extras” via some young ladies in a caravan behind the car wash. It was closed down for a while, but had since reopened with the same people working there. There aren’t enough police available to investigate these dodgy businesses which is why they can operate openly. I am sure some of them are legit but it’s hard to know which ones. I do go to a local nail bar, which is clean and well maintained, the staff have been there for ages,speak good English, and are qualified nail technicians, but I do have my suspicions about some of these outfits.

I’m sure they’re being exploited, perhaps even enslaved. I want no part of it.

Similar to the cheap nail bars which are usually a cover for some kind of use and abuse of people with no power and no choices. I don’t understand why anyone would support such operations, however cheerful they might seem.

Our 'foreign 'car washers charge £5 for a wash and was and £10 if it includes a vacuum and polish inside. That's on my Ford Focus.
The very pretty girls do the final polish.
All are very pleasant.

They operate in a few local supermarkets and I use them from time to time. I've never seen any of them touting for business or being in the least intimidating lilypollen. It's always a case of if you want your car washed, you drive up to them, if you don't then you don't.

I feel intimidated in Sainsbury's/Tesco when asked if I want my car washed. When I say "no" I feel guilty and that isn't right. Why do the Supermarkets allow these operators in their car parks?

And certainly not ‘illegals’

We use the one near our house and pay £15 for the standard clean which includes a quick inside vacuum. I'm not particularly PC, but I never refer or think of the people who work there as anything other than "people" ...

I've only ever used one once, in Waitrose car park where a charming young man washed my car while I shopped. The minute I returned an older man strode across and just about snatched the money out of my hand. He was obviously the boss.

I wanted to tip the car washer but he was immediately sent off to another car. The whole atmosphere was rather menacing so I didn't push it.

I don't think I'll use them again.

So in an hour those same 10 men could wash and valet four cars and get £60, or £6 each. If they work 8 hours a day, that's £48, assuming cars are coming in thick and fast to be washed and valeted. If they work 6 days a week they would get £288 before tax. And that's without breaks, and before they've taken out the costs of buckets, leathers, car shampoo, electricity for vacuuming etc. etc. And, of course, still assuming the cars are coming in thick and fast and there are no 'dead' periods. On wet days they wouldn't be making much at all.
So even if there's not a gang master taking all their hard earned cash, they're not exactly raking it in, are they?

I always get mine washed by what I privately call "the illegals" £15 sounds rather cheap if you were having the inside cleaned as well. I normally have to pay £25. A normal wash and polish is £10. Our local ones seem to be mainly Bulgarian, with a few Poles and Hungarians. The ones I chat to seem to have been here for quite a while and appear to be happy with their lives here so I'm presuming that they don't feel exploited.