Labor is Not a Commodity

Demand More from your S'mores this July 4th!

Mitch Ellmauer, Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

What are you doing this July 4^th weekend? Whether you’re planning a BBQ, going to watch some fireworks, or just hanging out with your friends, it’s a great time to participate our fun  

summer campaign, “We Want More From Our S’mores,” and fight for an end to child labor and poverty in the cocoa industry.

For years the chocolate industry has been plagued by child labor, forced labor, trafficking, and extreme poverty, but enough is enough.  This Independence Day, we’re telling Hershey to stop using child labor in West Africa and to get its chocolate Fair Trade Certified. Let’s show Hershey just how much we love Fair Trade chocolate by making s’mores made with the stuff. Think of it as a petition that you can eat!

Do you want to join in?

It’s simple, all you have to do is:

Business Tycoon in the Philippines Embroiled In Several Labor Disputes

By Chip Gibbons, Intern, ILRF

Lucio Tan was recently named by the Forbes Billionaires List as the 512th wealthiest person in the world and the second wealthiest person in the Philippines. Given his 2.8 billion in net worth one would think that Tan should have no difficulty complying with Filipino minimum wage and safety laws. However, Tan, in role as Chief Executive Officer of Eton Properties Philippines Inc, has had criminal charges filed against for failures to comply with minimum wage laws and employing a minor in dangerous occupation. He did not appear at a preliminary hearing held by prosecuters to investigate the charges against him.

On January 27, 2011, eleven construction workers fell from the 26th floor of an under construction high-rise condominium owned by Eton Properties, resulting in ten deaths and one serious injury. Among the deceased was 17-year old Kevin Mabunga. Additionally, while the  minimum wage in the Philippines is Php404 families of the workers allege they were only paid Php280.

Families of some of the constructions workers (dubbed the “Eton 11”) have filed criminal charges against Lucio Tan under the Wage Rationalization Act. The Wage Rationalization Act, passed in 1989, governs the process by which minimum wages are established in the Philippines, and seeks to “ensure a decent standard of living for the workers and their families; to guarantee the rights of labor to its just share in the fruits of production...” It also sets up criminal penalties for companies and individuals who fail to pay mandated minimum wages. Under this law should a corporation fail to comply, a prison sentence can be imposed on “the president, vice-president, chief executive officer, general manager, managing director or partner...” Tan, as CEO, is thus liable under Filipino law if Eton Properties failed to pay minimum wages. 

ILO convention supports growing domestic workers movement in the Dominican Republic

By Hanna Claeson, Intern for the Solidarity Center in the Dominican Republic

On Wednesday, the 25th of May, 2011, a delegation of domestic workers, accompanied by Dominican labor unions and the Solidarity Center, achieved the incredible. Urged by the delegation, in just over five and a half hours, the Dominican senate introduced, and passed a resolution encouraging the executive branch to support a proposed ILO Convention that seeks decent work for domestic workers. The Convention Concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers covers not only full time, but also part time and undocumented workers, and was adopted by the 100th Session of the ILO conference, on June 16, 2011.

Domestic workers are the undervalued, the invisible, and the otherwise forgotten. In the Dominican Republic, many come from rural areas. Many are minors. Many are undocumented Haitian immigrants, marginalized by language barriers, and the threat of deportation. Ninety-six percent of them are female.  In sum, they number over 325,000, making up 5.6% of the Dominican work force. Looking to escape desperate conditions, including financial pressure and debts, they are pushed into jobs that offer almost no protection or recognition under the law. They make, on average, between US $93-$120 a month, ($1,116-$1,440 a year), and typically work over 40 hour weeks. (If they sleep in the employer’s house, Dominican law allows half of their salary to be paid in the form of room and board.) Isolated in environments that are often defined by heavy lifting, toxic chemicals, sexual harassment, and physical and verbal abuse, domestic workers perform one of the most unsafe and vulnerable occupations to be found. They are degraded as “helpers,” held in low esteem for doing “women’s work,” denied contracts, the right to collective bargaining, and other essential benefits, such as adequate vacation periods, social security and health insurance.  Even so, they are not only central to sustaining the country’s households, but also the country’s economy. 

The Exploitation of Domestic Child Labor; Enslaved in a System of Servitude

By Allison Richina, International Labor Rights Forum

Constrained to working 60 plus hours a week, with 67% of domestic workers receiving no overtime pay, domestic workers are silenced in the brutal, slave-like conditions of this exploitative working system. Domestic work ultimately leaves workers invisible and undervalued. How can a progressive world continue to backtrack to a system that destroys human and working rights of millions of workers? Globally 100 million workers are plucked from their familiar lives to a life of total isolation and ruthless treatment. A domestic worker performs a variety of household services for an individual or a family, from providing care for children and elderly, to cleaning and household maintenance. Responsibilities may also include cooking, doing laundry and ironing, food shopping and other household errands. Conditions for domestic workers are often long and enduring, minimal or no breaks, very low wages, and unhealthy conditions.

According to the International Labour Organization, “Recent ILO estimates based on national surveys and/or censuses of 117 countries, place the number of domestic workers at around 53 million. However, experts say that due to the fact that this kind of work is often hidden and unregistered, the total number of domestic workers could be as high as 100 million. In developing countries, they make up at least 4 to 12 per cent of wage employment. Around 83 per cent of these workers are women or girls and many are migrant workers.”

Bangladesh Labor Leaders Win One Case; Ten More Cases Still to Go

By Bjorn Claeson and Liana Foxvog, SweatFree Communities

ILRF has learned that one of the most pernicious cases against Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity (BCWS) staff has been dismissed.  Nassa, a major Walmart supplier, had accused BCWS’s Babul Akhter and Aminul Islam of extortion, which could have resulted in sentences of between five years to lifetime in prison.  At the time of the alleged incident Mr. Akhter was in court dealing with the government’s cancellation of BCWS’s NGO registration.  Mr. Islam was in a BCWS office 50 kilometers from Nassa.

The dismissal of the extortion  case is a major victory for everyone who has campaigned so hard over the last few months to hold both government and major buyers accountable for treatment of the Bangladeshi labor rights leaders.  But there are ten cases remaining, all based on unsubstantiated and false charges, so the campaign continues.  ILRF’s tracking of the cases and supply chain research indicates that Walmart suppliers or service providers are linked to at least five of the cases filed; so please tell Walmart to act fast to get these charges dropped.

Accused labor rights leader speaks at Walmart annual shareholder meeting

The dismissal of the extortion case follows a petition drive in which more than 110,000 people (so far) worldwide have called on Walmart to denounce the false charges against BCWS labor rights leaders and urged the company to cease business with two suppliers, including Nassa, responsible for instigating several cases.  Kalpona Akter, Executive Director of BCWS,  hand-delivered the petitions to Walmart CEO, Mike Duke, at the Walmart shareholder meeting on June 3rd before she spoke to more than 15,000 shareholders and Walmart associates. 

Organized Labor’s Role in Democratic Transitions

This blog post was originally published on the Center for American Progress' blog here.

The Middle East and North Africa are entering a historic period. Revolutionary movements in Tunisia and Egypt already brought down autocratic governments, while popular uprisings in Libya and Syria continue to threaten authoritarian rule.

As the region continues to reshape itself, local policymakers and the international community need to remain aware of civil society’s important role in creating a stable democracy. Organized labor in particular has historically played a critical role in the democratic process, and policymakers must be mindful of the benefits of organized labor’s political participation.

Unions that are allowed to participate in the political process, collaborating with political parties or influencing policy for example, can facilitate the social compromise necessary to enact vital legislation at a crucial time for newly emerging democracies. Politically active unions are also more likely to work within emerging legal frameworks to resolve disputes, strengthening the new government’s institutional legitimacy and the rule of law.

Contradictions on the Colombia Free Trade Agreement

By Stephen Coats, Executive Director, USLEAP

This week we saw the great contradiction between the Obama Administration’s unrelenting push for a free trade agreement with Colombia, come hell or high water.  On June 8, the International Trade Union Confederation released its 2011 Annual Survey of Trade Union Rights which reported that not only are more trade unionists murdered in Colombia than in any other country but that more trade unionists were murdered in Colombia in 2010 than in the rest of the world combined.  

So it was a bit jarring to see US Trade Representative Ron Kirk issue a glowing report on June 13 saying that Colombia is making great progress in addressing worker rights concerns, giving the Colombian government a straight A report card for meeting every single step set out in a Labor Action Plan signed in April.  

Fight Child Labor and Join the Photo Petition to Hershey!

Mitch Ellmauer, Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

How can you tell Hershey to stop using child labor and show off your culinary skills? By making Fair Trade s'mores and joining our photo petition!

It’s simple. All you have to do is:

Gather some friends;

Make some Fair Trade s’mores;

Take a picture holding our Hershey campaign flyers;

Send you pictures to ILRF at tim.newman[at]ilrf.org!

We’ll post your photo petitions online and make sure that Hershey receives your message. What better way to tell Hershey to clean up their act than to show them how much you would love to make your s'mores with Fair Trade Hershey chocolate. 

The "We Want More from our S'mores" summer action is part of the Raise the Bar Hershey campaign. We are calling on Hershey to do more to stop child labor, forced labor and trafficking in its cocoa supply chain and to start using Fair Trade Certified cocoa for its products. You can check out our report about Hershey online here and send an e-mail to Hershey right now.

Alta Gracia: Bringing Living-Wage Union-Made Apparel to the Mainstream

Mitch Ellmauer, Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

Are you interested in sustainable, worker-oriented alternatives to sweatshops and exploitative labor practices in the developing world? Of course you are! So join us this Thursday at Busboys and Poets for a discussion on labor rights issues and learn about Alta Gracia, the only living-wage, union-made apparel brand in the developing world.

The event takes place Thursday, June 16, 2011 from 6-8pm at Busboys and Poets, 5^th and K location.

For years apparel executives have said that sweatshops must exist in order for their companies to stay viable, but Alta Gracia is proving that businesses can still make healthy profits while engaging in fair labor practices and respecting workers’ rights.

The factory was once owned by BJ&B, a Nike supplier. Like any sweatshop, it was notorious for its long hours, low pay, and poor working conditions. The workers organized a union and won a collective bargaining agreement with the company, an unprecedented feat in the Dominican Republic’s Free Trade Zone. However, in response to the union, BJ&B began disinvesting from the factory. On February 22, 2007, at the end of the working day, the company announced that the factory was closing and all of the workers were being laid off. For the next three years Villa Altagracia spiraled deep into depression.

In 2010, Joseph Bozich, CEO of Knight’s Apparel, reopened the factory. Bozich collaborated with the Workers’ Rights Consortium to develop a set of robust labor standards. Alta Gracia embraces the union instead of fighting it. Workers are paid three times the minimum wage. The WRC is allowed to monitor the factory to ensure that Alta Gracia is complying with its labor standards.

Panelists at the Event will include:

• Yenny Perez and Maritza Vargas, workers from Sitralpro at Alta Gracia;
• Theresa Haas from the Workers’ Rights Consortium;
• Teresa Cheng from United Students Against Sweatshops.

We hope to see you there!

Co-Sponsors:

United Students for Fair Trade
United Students Against Sweatshops
Fair Trade Resource Network
Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor
Sweatfree Communities
Green America
International Labor Rights Forum
Franciscan Action Network
Fair Trade Federation
International Campaigns at the AFL-CIO

Hundreds of Youth Rally in NYC to Tell Hershey to Stop Child Labor

Tim Newman, Campaigns Director, International Labor Rights Forum

Just days before World Day against Child Labor, hundreds of youth from New York City gathered with labor, environmental, social justice and faith-based organizations to call on Hershey to stop child labor, forced labor and trafficking in its cocoa supply chain. Ten years after Hershey commited to ending these abuses in its chocolate, these concerned consumers called on Hershey to "raise the bar" for responsible cocoa sourcing by starting to source Fair Trade Certified cocoa. (Check out photos from the rally here and video here!)

The rally was organized by ILRF along with Global Exchange and Green America as part of the Raise the Bar Hershey campaign. As the campaign has documented, Hershey is lagging behind its competitors in committing to source cocoa that has been certified by independent third parties to comply with international labor rights standards. The consequences of Hershey's lack of responsible sourcing requirements is the tragic exploitation of children.