When workers at the Cupid Foundations (CF) factory in Nicaragua,
which makes women's undergarments for the U.S. market, formed
a union, CF management resorted to intimidation and firing of
union leaders in an attempt to destroy the union. CF's factories
in the U.S. are unionized, but evidently the company does not
recognize the same rights of free association and collective bargaining
for its overseas workers. Workers at CF make a base salary of about $40 per month. Because
this is not enough for survival, they have to work many hours
of overtime. In sworn testimony workers testified that they face
harassment and long periods of work with no rest stops. The union at CF was registered with the Nicaraguan Ministry of
Labor in January of 1997. In April and early May, three union
leaders were fired. Later in May, a meeting was held at the factory.
Several workers stood up to say that they had been pressured to
join the union and that things were fine in the factory. In the presence of the Police Chief and a U.S. Embassy official
who attended the meeting, CF officials collected signatures from
workers on a document saying that they did not want a union. Three
workers who signed the statement said later, "I have received
threats, harassment and intimidation, that I would be fired if
I continued to belong to the union." At the request of CF the
Minister of Labor has canceled the union's registration. Twenty
union members have filed a petiton in the the local court asking
that the cancellation not be allowed. The union still has its
legal recognition and could still be revived if management were
to stop its attacks. Action: Send a letter by mail or fax to: Mr. David Welsch and Ms. Marilyn
Welsch, Cupid Foundations, Inc., 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY
10016 Fax: (212) 481-9357 Tell them the story above and urge them to: Reinstate the three
fired union workers (Eudice Poveda, Nora Cerrato, and Ana Julia
Espinoza) and end the harassment of the union and allow organization
to proceed. Send a copy of the a letter to the United States Ambassador
in Managua: Lino Gutierrez U. S. Ambassador American Embassy Fax:
(505) 266-9056 Managua, Nicaragua . On June 11, 1997, in Las Vegas, Nevada, two hundred union activists
marched on Dillard's Department Store demanding that the retailer
take responsibility for the conditions of workers who make the
Guess clothing it sells and an end to Guess?, Inc.'s use of sweatshops
in the production of its clothing. Guess was removed from the U.S. Department of Labor's apparel
industry Trendsetter List last November after a series of investigations
uncovered illegal industrial homework and violations of minimum
wage and overtime laws at Guess contractors in Los Angeles. Guess
is also under investigation by the National Labor Relations Board
for illegally harassing, spying on, and terminating workers, as
well as illegally relocating work to Mexico to thwart unionization
efforts. Cristobal Perez, a former employee, said, "I worked for a Guess
contractor for six years and sometimes we were paid in cash and
did not even receive the minimum wage. Many workers had to take
work home. When we spoke out, Guess retaliated by pulling its
work and we lost our jobs." In late May, two hundred activists distributed leaflets at the
South Coast Plaza Mall in Orange County, California, while Guess
held its first Annual Shareholders Meeting nearby, to demand that
retailers Nordstroms and Robinsons-May similarly take steps to
end Guess' use of sweatshops. To order a free 8 minute "Guess?" video in English and Spanish
and for more information about the "Guess?" Campaign, contact
Ginny Coughlin at the Stop Sweatshops Partnership, 1710 Broadway,
New York, NY 10019. The June 25 New York Times carries a full-page ad from Nike quoting Andrew Young's June
24, 1997 report on Nike operations in Asia saying "It is my sincere
belief that Nike is doing a good job...but Nike can and should
do better." The portion of sentence that is missing from the ad
says "in implementing its code of conduct." When you call the
800 number listed in the ad, you get a recorded messages that
only quotes Young as concluding "Nike is doing a good job." Young's report fails to address issues of low wages. In an interview
he said he did not deal with wages because he is not an economist.
During visits to factories he used Nike interpreters. Subscribers
can examine Young's report on the internet at www.digitalrelease.com
and enter keyword: "GoodWorks." HRAS will provide further analysis
of the report in upcoming issues of this Buyer's Guide. The following are excerpts from an article in the June 14 edition
of the Youth Newspaper (Thanh Nien ), published in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam: Widespread coverage by newspaper, radio and television journalists
revealed that "Nike has raised the exploitation of poverty-stricken
foreign workers to a fine and spectacularly remunerative art."
(New York Times, March 31, 1997). In response to this negative publicity, several
Nike representatives and high-level consultants visited Vietnam
(Young's delegation) to assess the situation and to come up with
plans for rescuing the company's image. Nike announced that it
would increase wages by 10%. Sam Yang Vina Co. (Nike's subcontractor
Dong Nai district) announced that the company had given workers
a 8.6% salary increase. But what is the truth? Have wages increased? Reviewing figures for the period April through June of 1997 in
the Dong Nai district, Vo Minh Quang, Director of Dong Nai Labor
Bureau and Nguyen Dinh Thang, president of the Dong Nai Confederation
of Labor reported: "These statements are incorrect. Most workers
here in Dong Nai received at most the equivalent of $40 per month."
This pay level is not even legal under Vietnamese law. Paystubs from April from the Pouchen Co. (another Nike contractor)
indicate that after overtime and bonus were added and company
deductions subtracted one worker was paid $42.50 a month -- still
less than the legally mandated $45.00 per month minimum wage.
This worker's payroll deductions did not include social security
or health insurance. Have hours been reduced? Before Nike sent its representatives to Dong Nai, the workers
at four Nike contractors -- Tae Kwan Vina, Pouchen, Chang Sing,
and Viet Vinh -- had to work 12- to 14-hour shifts. Now a company
statement claims that shifts have been reduced to 8 hours: 7 hours
of work plus a combined total of 1 hour for rest and lunch. What
is the truth? At Pouchen Co. which has 9,200 workers, employees worked 12 hours
per night; now the work hours have been reduced to 9 hours per
night (including two rest periods and 30 minutes for eating).
The actual work time is 8 hours each shift. This is not the 8
hours per shift (including rest and meal) claimed by the company.
According to workers, contractors are altering employee time cards
to bring apparent hours into conformity with the company's stated
new policy, making it impossible for the labor union and Nike
representatives to find out the truth. DO BUYS Here are women's skirts made by union members in the U.S. (see
June 1997 Buyer's Guide for dresses and blouses) Look for Union Label or the "Made in
U.S.A." Source: May/June 1997 "Label Letter of the AFL/CIO. Skirts: Andrean Avenuery, Allison Ann, Asher, BCCI, Bonnie Jean, Broadway
Juniors, Careerlook, Catch Me, Chicago Trousers, Coco Bianco,
Corbin's Country, DKNY, Easy Pieces, E R Gerard, Felix, Fundamental
Things, Georgia Apparel, Haas, Henry Grethel, House of Ronnie,
J.A.C. Plus, James River Trades, J.A. Resorts, Joseph Vincent,
Julia Lauren, Koret, Learbury, Levi, L.L Bean, Maggie Sweet, Magliano,
Mark of the Lion, Miss Victoria, Mustang, NU Look, Pendleton,
Pierre Cardin, Play It Again, PSI, Rear End, Redwood, Ronnie Phillips,
Sasson of Mustang, Setiage, Smart Lady, Sophisticates, Trheads,
Time Zone, and 35N10. Child Labor Rugmark Label On April 16 the AFL-CIO and the U.S.A. Rugmark Foundation. launched
the Rugmark campaign in the U.S. This label, checked on the spot,
means that the hand woven carpet was not made by children under
14 and that the adults who made it were paid at least the minimum
wage. This label also means that the carpet importers pay 1% of
the import price to a fund for the education and rehabilitation
of children who have had to work. For more information contact: RUGMARK U.S.A. Phone: 202-544-7198
U.S. Company Tries to
Break Union in Nicaragua
Guess Action at Dillard's
Nike Releases Young's Report...
Labor Bureau Reports Illegal Wages