Labor is Not a Commodity

Guidance for Consumers on Valentine's Day

By Katie Bergman, Free2Work

Flowers, jewelry, and chocolate: collectively, these are the modern-day linchpin of Valentine’s Day.  Yet lurking in the shadows of these industries is a myriad of highly-contentious labour issues.  In order to produce larger quantities of products at a lower price, many companies knowingly or unknowingly use supply chains in which child or forced labour, poor environmental practices, and appalling working conditions exist.  Unfortunately, many consumers are unaware of the breaches of human rights that occur during the trajectory of production, before a diamond necklace or box of chocolates reaches its final destination on some store shelf.

This February 14, the National Retail Federation anticipates that U.S. consumers will spend $17.6 billion on gifts for their significant others.  But how much of this will be spent on ethically-sourced products?  

In the U.S., an estimated $1.9 billion will be spent on flowers alone for Valentine’s Day 2012—but most of these dollars will go to products harvested by workers under exploitive working conditions.  Would we still purchase flowers if we knew that they were produced at the expense of a sexually harassed flower worker in Ecuador?  Or by a Kenyan labourer who was paid less than a dollar for a 12-hour day of work?  Or by a flower worker in Columbia exposed to 127 different pesticides on a regular basis, including ones known to be extremely toxic or carcinogenic? 

Like flower sales, jewelry purchases fuel labour-related injustices where regard is not paid to how the products are sourced.  Of the $4.1 billion that shoppers are projected to spend on jewelry for Valentine’s Day 2012, a percentage of these sales will be propagating child labour.  For example, Surat, India—which cuts and polishes 92% of all diamonds in the global trade—relies heavily upon the labour of children under the age of ten. 

Turning Valentine’s Day into International Flower Workers' Day

By Eric Gottwald, International Labor Rights Forum

Sixty percent of flowers sold in the United States come from Colombia, where nearly 100,000 workers earn poverty wages in spite of working grueling 16 to 18 hour days. When flower workers, the majority of whom are women, try to organize to improve their working conditions they inevitably face government-sanctioned retaliation, firings, sexual harassment, and even beatings.  With the recent passage of U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, Colombian flower exporters stand to gain tens of millions of dollars on the backs of these exploited workers.  

That's why the International Labor Rights Forum and the U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project are asking consumers to help turn Valentine’s Day into International Flower Workers' Day by taking action to support flower workers. Already, just this morning, over 1000 consumers have sent letters to the Colombian Labor Minister demanding that the government fulfill its promise to hold Colombian flower companies accountable for labor rights abuses.

The U.S. – Colombia FTA: a bad deal for workers and labor rights

By Eric Gottwald, International Labor Rights Forum

After five years of struggle, the U.S. Congress passed the U.S. trade promotion agreement with Colombia on October 12^th.  The International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) has opposed the passage of any FTA with Colombia until the Colombian government demonstrates the political will and capacity to make meaningful, lasting improvements to its dismal record on enforcing internationally-recognized, fundamental labor rights.  

For over a decade, Colombia has been the world’s most dangerous country to be a trade unionist. According to the Solidarity Center of the AFL-CIO, roughly 4,000 Colombian trade unionists have been murdered in the past 20 years.  Fifty one Colombian unionists were murdered in 2010, more than the rest of the world combined.  Shockingly, virtually no one is prosecuted or convicted for these crimes, with an impunity rate of approximately 96 percent.

In 2009, the ILRF submitted written comments to the United States Trade Representative outlining a set of labor rights benchmarks that the Colombian government should meet before the U.S. considers the passage of any FTA, including:

•  Demonstrate a dramatic and sustained reduction (and eventual elimination) of violence and threats against trade unionists and other human rights defenders.
•  Demonstrate a dramatic increase in the rates of investigation and successful prosecution of those who commit acts of violence against trade unionists, including exploring alleged links between paramilitary groups, multinational corporations, and Colombian security forces.    
• Enact labor law reforms to bring Colombia in compliance with the 8 ILO Core Conventions it has ratified and close the loopholes in Colombian law that allow employers to use “labor cooperatives,” temporary contracting, and other schemes that undermine Colombian workers’ right to organize and bargain collectively.  

Stand in Solidarity: International Day of the Flower Worker

By Rebecca Van Horn, Program Coordinator, USLEAP

While friends, families and couples celebrate Valentine’s Day, Colombian workers, unions, and NGOs are joining together to commemorate something different this February 14th: the International Day of the Flower Worker.

U.S. consumers spend over $18 billion annually on flowers, 60% of which are imported from Colombia. Eighty-four percent of the flowers produced in Colombia are exported to the United States, but the conditions for those who harvest and prepare the flowers are atrocious.

Particularly in the months leading up to Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day, flower workers face tremendous pressure to produce, resulting in taxing physical and psychological conditions. According to the Victoria International Development Education Association, two-thirds of Colombian and Ecuadorian flower workers suffer from work-related health problems, including headaches, nausea, impaired vision, conjunctivitis, rashes, asthma, stillbirths, miscarriages, congenital malformations, and respiratory and neurological problems. Approximately 20% of pesticides used in Colombian flower production are known carcinogens or toxins that have been either restricted or prohibited in North America and Europe.

The Dank Smell of Roses

By Lucia Curiel, Volunteer, International Labor Rights Forum

This Valentine’s Day, as you pass by local street vendors, or go into a local shop, th    ere will likely be more flowers around than last month. A bold red rose might catch your eye. If you stop and inspect, you might appreciate its vivid color, evocative aroma and delicate form and petals. It’s hardly inappropriate that such a beautiful, graceful being should have come to symbolize love and affection.

Yet where did this and other flowers come from? We might imagine such a beauty to have grown in a tranquil garden or a lush and wild bed. But such a romantic image of this emblem of romance contrasts sharply with the bitter, painful circumstances surrounding the flower’s production and delivery. If we begin to trace that rose, or any other flower, back to its point of origin, it is suddenly not so pretty.

In reality, Linda Farthing, in her article, “Where Flowers Bloom So Does Hope: Colombia’s Troubled Flower Industry,” tells us, flowers sold in US supermarkets are very likely from Colombia because Colombia’s cheap labor has made imported flowers less expensive than those grown in the US. Over 60% of the flowers sold in the U.S. come from Colombia. There, in Colombia, about 100, 000 flower workers toil under unsafe, unjust labor conditions for poverty-level wages. According to Farthing, “Although flower workers earn more than most others in agriculture, they still generally only earn Colombia’s minimum wage. This approximately $12 a day covers less than 45 percent of estimated basic living expenses and contrasts dramatically with the estimated retail value of the flowers that just one woman picks daily - US$600–800.”

Flower Workers’ Conditions in Finca Guacari Will Be Taken to the ILO Committee on Application of Standards

By Andrea Pradilla, Trade Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

On September 22, 2010, local labor unions in Colombia announced their decision to the Ministry of Social Protection, during a meeting aimed to resolve the critical conditions of the flower workers in the department of Cundinamarca in Colombia.

According to the Colombian National Union of Flower Workers (UNTRAFLORES), in Finca Guacari, labor rights violations have dramatically increased over the past four months.  Finca Guacari is a flower plantation located in Zipaquira near Bogota that primarily exports its production to the U.S. market. The plantation belongs to Sunburst Farms, which proudly announces being a corporate socially and environmentally responsible company.

Workers on this plantation organized a union on September 7, 2010. They were motivated by the company’s 3-month failure to pay their wages, health coverage charges, pension fees, and other benefits. After forming the union, seven members of Sintraguacari—the newly created union—were illegally fired in what constitutes a clear retaliation against workers and unions in the cut flower industry.

“Riegel Deceits, Exploits, Steals and Lays Off Workers”: Temporary workers in the Colombian Cut-Flower Sector on Strike

Ledys Sanjuan Mejia, Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

“I can’t be unemployed” said Emilse Bermudez, a laid off cut flower worker. She and her 200 co-workers were victims of a series of dismissals that began June 30th in the Riegel S.A. plantation. On July 7th, on the road that leads to Facatativá, temporary cut flower workers took a stand and blockaded the company gates awaiting a response from company representatives. Untraflores, the cut flower trade union, immediately stepped in to show solidarity with the dismissed workers.  Aide Silva, President of Untraflores called this struggle “of extreme importance, as this is the first time temporary workers take a stand against management to fight for their labor rights. They are holding the company responsible and not dubious temporary employment agencies”. The use of temporary workers and Associated Work Cooperatives (Cooperativas de Trabajo Asociado, CTA) is now the rule in cut-flower companies. By using subcontractors, job security is low and labor rights are violated without employer accountability. The 35 workers outside the gates of Riegel plantations represent all levels of organized workers:  temporary, formal and informal.

Mario Camacho Navas, José Roberto Camacho Navas and Carlos Eduardo Forero Ramírez senior executives and manager Cristian Caicedo Castillo head the Riegel S.A. distributor and producer of roses and astromelias in the savannah of Bogota.  Riegel underwent restructuring in November 2009. Restructuring is common practice among cut flower companies in Colombia. When a company restructures, workers are laid off and a completely new workforce -or sometimes the same workers- are hired under temporary, unstable contracts through CTAs or temporary agencies. Previous contracts and seniority are scrapped when a company restructures, thus endangering workplace security and stripping people of their rights as permanent employees. In this case the head of the CTA, A.S. Servicios Integrales E.U, Alberto Santamaría Roa is also the head of human resources of Reigel. The fact that the head of human resources is the owner of the CTA, demonstrates that CTAs are tools used to further exploit workers by sidestepping company accountability for setting fair wages, creating permanent employment contracts, and respecting the workers’ rights. 

FUNDESS President, César Estacio, Visits ILRF and Raises Awareness for Flower Workers Worldwide

By Vanessa León, Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

The International Labor Rights Forum had the pleasure of hosting César Estacio, long time ILRF partner  and President of the Foundation for Sustainable Social Development (FUNDESS), earlier this month for a series of labor rights events in the D.C. area. A former flower worker himself, César was fired after organizing a union in his company and later black listed by the flower plantations in Cayambe, Ecuador. Having witnessed and endured labor rights violations in Ecuador’s largest flower plantation region, César came to Washington D.C. to both raise awareness of the working conditions for flower workers and educate the public on issues concerning freedom of association.

César’s trip in the nation’s capital was kicked off with local events in celebration of May Day, or International Worker’s Day.  Accompanied by IRLF’s Deputy Director, Trina Tocco, Bangladeshi and Pakistani worker representatives Kalpona Akter and Zehra Bano respectively and myself, César enjoyed an afternoon of speeches by a variety of labor leaders, activists and elected officials at the Maryland and District of Columbia AFL-CIO’s May Day Picnic hosted by the National Labor College.  Later, with American flag in hand, it was off to Lafayette Park where over half a million people turned up to participate in the May Day for America March organized by The Campaign to Reform Immigration for America.  To get the most up-to-date action alerts and information on immigration reform events in your area, text JUSTICE (or JUSTICIA for Spanish) to 69866 or click here to sign up online.

Happy Mother's Day and the 2010 Report on the Colombian Floriculture Industry by Corporación Cactus

By Vanessa León, Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

 

Although it’s not too far fetched to imagine in this tough economy, picture yourself desperately in need of a job. You search and search, despite the fact that there aren’t many jobs to pick from in the first place, and then out of nowhere- a job comes to you! What are the chances?!  So two or three months of hard work on your part go by and then your boss tells you that your services are no longer needed. Not only that, you are told that you won’t be able to find work elsewhere in the company should you choose not to sign a contract stating that such a decision was reached mutually by your employer and yourself. What do you do? Do you sign? 
 

Mother’s Day is quickly approaching- win chocolates and support flower workers!

By Vanessa León, Intern, International Labor Rights Forum

Harassment: sometimes sexual, other times verbal, often times both.
Attempts to organize unions result in termination of employment.
Pregnancy tests or proof of sterilization as a condition for hiring.
Pesticides and fungicides causing respiratory and eye problems, skin rashes and miscarriages.
Years of faithful, grueling work only to be denied basic worker's rights. Basic human rights.

Masses of women & mothers are forced to endure these labor conditions in the flower industry.
Often working to escape poverty, women succumb to violations of unregulated & unstable work.
Teasing and discrimination become their managers’ script,
Hazardous working environments - the stage.
Equal pay for equal work is a mere fantasy,
Rigorous overtime with no compensation, unfortunately - their reality.
Shouldn't mothers deserve more???

Do your part in seeking justice for these mothers and all flower workers.
Act and in turn, salvage a life.
You can give hope to those at the root of the cut flower industry. Here's how...

Join ILRF in supporting flower workers by participating in this year’s Mother’s Day Raffle. Enter to win a basket of Fair Trade Certified chocolates mailed to your mom or loved one https://secure.ga6.org/08/mothersdayraffle10 and in turn, help workers around the world fight for a safe workplace free from sexual harassment, a decent living wage and protection for their health while at work.

• For $10, we will enter a name of your choosing into the raffle.
• $30 will get you not only three raffle tickets but also a bar of Fair Trade Certified chocolate from Equal Exchange and a Mother’s Day greeting card mailed to a special individual on your behalf.
• Finally, for $60, we will give you eight raffle entries plus a Fair Trade Certified chocolate and Mother’s Day card for TWO individuals of your choice.

Two winners of the Fair Trade Certified chocolate baskets, from either Equal Exchange or Sweet Earth, will be chosen at random from the raffle. Click here for the official raffle rules. Winning entrants will be notified by May 3rd and the two lucky recipients of the Fair Trade Certified chocolate baskets will be congratulated on the ILRF website shortly after the raffle.

With Mother’s Day fast approaching, the flower industry is at its peak in production and unfortunately, that means a rise in labor rights violations for the hundreds and thousands of workers in this industry. It’s important that we not only educate ourselves on their horrendous working conditions but also act on improving them. Proceeds from the raffle will go towards ILRF’s Fairness in Flowers Campaign, which promotes safe and decent working conditions in the global cut flower industries through consumer education and support for local organizations that advocate for workers’ rights. Your purchase will help ILRF and its partners push producers and retailers to provide real protections for both flower workers and the environment.

BUY YOUR RAFFLE TICKETS NOW