No More Sweatshops!
Sweat-Free
Procurement Campaign
“Only if a consortium
of cities, school boards and states adopt progressive procurement guidelines
will government play a responsible role in the global marketplace instead
of using our tax dollars to subsidize sweatshops, child labor and poverty”
-Tom
Hayden, Director of the Coalition.
Did you know that billions in public tax dollars now perpetuate and subsidize
sweatshops and child labor abuses? Incredibly, public school district,
city, state and other government agencies across the country routinely purchase
goods such as law enforcement uniforms, computers, office supplies and sporting
goods that were made by sweatshop labor. Join No More Sweatshops! in changing
that.
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Anti-Sweatshop Activist Susie Shannon:
"LA police uniforms should not be made by sweatshop labor."
No More Sweatshops! is a growing movement of labor, clergy, students, human
rights advocates and conscientious consumers across the country and the world
who believe that public agencies should encourage their suppliers to adopt model
business practices and stop buying sweatshop-made products. The coalition, including
the AFL-CIO, UNITE-HERE, Sweatshop Watch, Progressive Jewish Alliance, Progressive
Christians Uniting and CLUE, has made important strides in just the last two
years, winning one legislative victory after another in California, the capital
of sweatshop labor in the U.S.
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Principles of "Sweat-Free" Policies
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No Tax Dollars to Poverty-wage Producers! All plants
producing or laundering apparel & textile products for the Public
Agency must provide wage and benefit compensation that at least
takes workers and their families above the poverty line.
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No Hidden Factories! All apparel and textile vendors
for the Public Agency must publicly disclose the locations of factories,
including factories of subcontractors or suppliers, and other information
required for enforcement
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Enforcement through mechanisms including a citizen
task force working with the appropriate Public Agency staff and
an independent monitoring organization with a proven track record,
such as the Worker Rights Consortium.
Don't let concerns about budgetary woes fool you into thinking
these policies cannot be done! The fact is that these policies
are eminently affordable because most labor costs are so cheap -- usually
in the range of just one or two percent of the final price paid for garments
and other goods made in sweatshops.
One recent study shows that the actual direct labor cost of a baseball
hat made in Bangladesh is less than two cents -- or less than one-tenth
of one percent of the $18.99 retail price of the cap! So increasing the
wages of sweatshop workers above the poverty level would be barely felt
by the purchasing agency or consumer.
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The Movement is Spreading!
No More Sweatshops!,with support from the Oakland Institute,
is now also campaigning for similar "sweat-free" laws in Berkeley,
Oakland, San Francisco, Santa Monica and Los Angeles County.
For a more detailed list of individuals and organizations and
their contact information, please click here.
(No Sweat Procurement Coalition for Berkeley and Oakland.doc)
To Learn More About the Sweat-Free
Procurement Campaign, click here
The United States is the largest market
in the world, purchasing $200 billion a year in goods and services. We the
people have the power to end child labor and sweatshop abuses. You can also
call on your representatives to support legislation at local, state and federal
levels, saying "U.S. tax dollars should not subsidize sweatshops and
must adhere to socially responsible procurement laws."
Join Us!
Join No More Sweatshops! in ending taxpayer subsidies of sweatshop
labor and help protect poor workers in the U.S. and around the world by supporting
"sweat-free" government procurement legislation. For more information
about how to get involved, call 310 559-9522 x 4 or email abolishsweatshops@yahoo.com.
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