Despite Life magazine's declaration of victory in 1938, sweatshop production came out of hibernation in the late 1960s. A combination of forces at home and abroad contributed to their reappearance: changes in the retail industry, a growing global economy, increased reliance on contracting, and a large pool of immigrant workers in the United States.

Public, government, and media concern remains focused on problems in the apparel industry, although, as in the past, sweatshops continue to be found in a variety of industries.