A Konformist Special: Nike 6 November 1997

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A Konformist Special: Nike 6 November 1997

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A Konformist Special:
Nike 7 November 1997

Date: Thursday, October 23, 1997 10:21:57 PM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org (Mike Rhodes)
Subj: Nike: rpts from local committees

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410 http://www.compugraph.com/clr

Nike Mobilization: Reports from Local Committees
[Following are excerpts from reports sent to us by local committees
concerning their activities around the international Nike mobilization. I=
f
we receive enough reports from others of you, we will issue a second
collection of excerpts. Please keep those reports coming in. They are som=
e
of the most enjoyable reading we have done in a long time!]
* * *
Albuquerque =D0 Jerome Chavez, Progressive Student Alliance, University o=
f New
Mexico:

Members of the Progressive Student Alliance, a group at the University of=

New Mexico, passed out anti-Nike leaflets at two shopping centers in
Albuquerque, NM. First we handed out
leaflets at Coronado Mall. Mall security ordered us to leave. Afterwards=
,
vowing to continue to inform more people about Nike's practices, we went =
to
Winrock mall, a few blocks away from Coronado. We passed out more flyers=
to
patrons until, predictably, the mall security came and told us to leave
there too.

Many people were receptive to what we were doing, even some of the securi=
ty
guards who had to enforce the mall rules. We had many people sign a lett=
er
to Nike CEO Phil Knight and President Clinton about Nike. A lot of the
patrons thanked and congratulated us for informing people
about the issue. We plan to continue to campaign against Nike in our
community and on our campus.
* * *
Ann Arbor -- Rich Goff

There was a great deal of student interest in the action. We were success=
ful
in getting several student/labor/activist groups to participate or lend
support. We held a rally in the center of campus which was attended by
about 50 people. We marched to the gates of the stadium (there was a home=

game). We were able to set up pickets and one huge banner at the main ga=
te.
Anyone who went in the gate could see us. There we distributed flyers to=

the fans. There were also two Nike reps there distributing pro-Nike info.=

They said they were volunteers. Fortunately, we outnumbered and
outvocalized them.

We see this as just the beginning. Other student organizations are gettin=
g
involved. The University President is rumored to be questioning the wisd=
om
of the UM contract with Nike. More pressure is needed.
* * *
Baltimore =D0 Brian Connors, the Student Socialist Forum from the Univers=
ity
of Maryland,
Baltimore County (UMBC)

We leafleted at Westview Mall. Security had originally stopped us, but we=

continued in another area until a policeman arrived. We then went to the
Security Square Mall. This mall was larger and we went unnoticed until we=

had distributed all of our 350 fliers. There was a generally good respons=
e
from the public. Many people told us that they never bought Nikes for thi=
s
reason. One man from a letter carrier's union told us that his group were=

already boycotting Nike. It was a very successful day. We look forward to=

working with you again in the near future.
* * *
Toronto =D0 Lynda Yanz, Maquila Solidarity Network/Labour behind the Labe=
l
Coalition

We held a rally outside a large sporting goods store in a busy shopping
area. We received media coverage from two national TV stations. One camer=
a
crew followed our group into the store where we asked the manager to sign=

our petition on sweatshop abuses. We also got an op-ed piece in the Toron=
to
Star, a major Canadian newspaper.

On Sunday a couple of us diehards took our leaflets, petitions, buttons a=
nd
a few balloons to the Toronto International Marathon. It seems that many
athletes really care about these issues. That was the same message we got=

during the campus leafleting blitzes at the athletic centres at both York=

University and the U of Toronto. Thus we're particularly keen to know abo=
ut
and connect with groups working on campuses and around corporate sponsors=
hips.
* * *
Vancouver, BC =D0 Robert Strang

The Justice Do it NIKE! Coalition protested at 2 NIKE store locations.
Thousands of people witnessed the largest of 4 NIKE protests since last
autumn. About 30 people held placards, scrawled chalk slogans on the
sidewalk, made up and performed songs and handed out leaflets. One skit =
was
an advertisement for NIKE "Air Genocides." One person displayed the shoe=
to
the crowd while the other gave a mock sales pitch linking East Timor to
companies like NIKE. Also on sale were the NIKE Worker Kicker and the Sex=
ual
Harassment Cross-Trainer. At 4 PM ,15 of us proceeded to the NIKE store i=
n
Pacific Centre mall and started leafleting in the store. A mall security=

guard put one "pamphleteer" in a choke hold when he stated he wouldn't le=
ave
until the police came. The protester (not the security guard!) spent the
night in jail and was released this morning without charges.
* * *
Chapel Hill (University of North Carolina) -- Jeff Jones and Marion Traub=
-Werner

We've heard here that Florida State is one of the many Nike schools where=

protests have been
brewing. We're planning a campus speak-out on the Nike issue for Nov. 7,=

the day before UNC's big home football game against FSU, and we'd love to=

hook up with some folks from FSU.
* * *
Everett, Washington =D0 Kat Overman

About 30 people showed up (which, in Everett, is a big crowd for somethin=
g
like this). We had wonderful signs that said, "Don't Do It, Nike," "Nik=
e
Unfair to Women," "Stop Sweatshops." We also had signs from the Snohomis=
h
County Labor Council that said, "A Family Wage Is a Family Value." About=

half the people we leafleted said that they do not buy Nike shoes and the=

other half were glad to be educated on the sweatshop issue. We got lots =
of
support from the passers-by -- honking horns, waving and giving us thumbs=

up. All-in-all it was a very successful event!
* * *
Lehigh Valley, PA -- Gary Olson, Lehigh Valley Labor Party

About 16 protesters carried picket signs through the Lehigh Valley Mall
until police made them leave. One participant wore a goblin mask and carr=
ied
a sign that read, "Nike, now that's scary." Protests were at two Foot Loc=
ker
stores and two other shops, all of which sell Nike products.
* * *
Madison, WI -- Ben Manski

We did some street theater and attracted a crowd.
* * *
Olympia, WA =D0 Sonja Sivesind, Clint Burelson and Peter Bohmer

[The main protest in Olympia was on October 5, at a golf tournament
sponsored by Nike.] The protest was organized by the Olympia Movement for=

Justice and Peace and local social justice committees from religious grou=
ps
in Olympia. This is the second year Nike has come to our town and the sec=
ond
year we have protested their visit. This year's protest which was more t=
han
twice as big as last year's demonstration. Over 150 people showed up this=

time, including some with giant puppets, stilt walkers and huge signs for=

drivers on the highway to read.

The Nike tour goes across the country and we would like to see protests i=
n
every city. We believe Nike is very vulnerable at their golf tournaments=
=2E
The tournaments provide an opportunity to show the stark contrast between=

what Nike pays for grown men to play outside on a nice green landscape an=
d
Nike's refusal to pay a decent wage to young women working all day inside=

Nike factories.

[ from earlier sweatshop days, by Sara Norcliffe Cleghorn]
"The golf links lie so near the mill
that almost every day
the laboring children can look out
and watch the men at play."
* * *
Portland, OR =D0 Justice. Do It Nike!

About 40 people protested at the Portland Nike Town. The event was the fo=
cus
of an Associated Press story on the mobilization.
* * *
Salt Lake =D0 DeNorris Bradley, the Salt Lake Chapter of Solidarity

Twenty enthusiastic citizens protested the Nike company's overseas labor
practices. The protest =D0 which took place at a busy intersection in fr=
ont
of a spoting goods store -- was warmly received
by all those driving by. Nearly every motorist honked their horn in respo=
nse
to one of the posters which read, "Honk if You Hate Sweatshops." The
demonstration was the turning point in the decision of three (new members=
)
deciding to join Solidarity. The demonstration was one of the key stories=
of
the local evening Salt Lake Fox News.
* * *
Santa Barbara (Paseo Nuevo) =D0 John Hutchinson =

I handed out 100 double-sided leaflets at the downtown mall in on Saturda=
y.
This was the first time I have passed out leaflets.
* * *
Seattle =D0 Sarah Luthens

[There were two Nike protests in Seattle this month. This is a report on =
the
larger event, on October 4.] There were about 50 rowdy protesters in fron=
t
of NikeTown with our picket signs and very loud chants, despite the heavy=
rain.
* * *
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign =D0 Dennis Grammenos, the Stud=
ent
Labor Support Network

About 60 protesters on October 17 urged the University of Illinois to dem=
and
that NIKE rectify conditions in its factories and allow nongovernmental
organizations with a solid record in
workplace monitoring to monitor conditions in such factories, or else to
discontinue the University's affiliation with NIKE.
* * *
New York City =D0 Jeff Ballinger, Press for Change

Both Jim Hightower and Michael Moore showed up at the leafleting action f=
or
the Manhattan Nike Town store.
* * *
Otautahi (Christchurch), Aotearoa (New Zealand) =D0 Joe Davies

About twenty of us met in front of a shop on the main street, which was
having a Nike sale. We got rid of 400 leaflets in the space of ten minute=
s.
The protest linked the issues of sweatshop labour with:

* financial support for Suharto's dictatorship
* repression in East Timor
* job losses at home and in other unionized countries
* the globalizing economy and its implications

Public response was among the friendliest I have ever experienced on a
demo. Most people wanted information and most supported us in word or by
honking, thumbs up, etc.
* * *
Boulder, CO =D0 Divest CU

About 10 people leafleted the crowd coming into the home game. Two women
carried a huge anti-Nike banner up and down the street through the crowd.=

* * *
Wellington, New Zealand =D0 Manu Caddie

An inner-city venue was used as a base with twenty or so fact sheets and
articles on Nikes business practices, particularly in SE Asia. Leafleting=

was done outside the main sports-shoe stores promoting Nike, with one
shop-assistant (who we gave the information to before starting) coming ou=
t
and saying how shocked he was, that he supported what we were doing and
shouldn't wear Nike clothes anymore. Most people were very interested and=

some had read of the situations in the newspaper and New Internationalist=

magazine.

In the evening we had a public meeting attended by 35 people, had a share=
d
meal, then read from some of the articles and "Behind the Swoosh" book.
After this we faxed the New Zealand Rugby Football Union. Rugby is our
country's main sport and its administrative body are meeting next week to=

decide whether our national rugby team should swap sponsors from the
NZ-owned Canterbury brand to Nike (Nike have offered the team $70million =
per
year). We all faxed our opposition to this move in addition to a letter s=
ent
by the Free East Timor Coalition of New Zealand along the same lines.

We signed individual letters to Nike New Zealand CEO Richard Reid express=
ing
our concerns and asking him to put pressure on Nike International. Then w=
e
watched two videos on child labour in Asia and called it a day.

CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. For a sample copy, send your postal
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---------------------------------------------------------------------
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issues interest you: Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala, Mexico=
,
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***********************************************************
Date: Friday, October 24, 1997 8:20:21 AM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org
Subj: Oct. 18 Nike protest analysis

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410 http://www.compugraph.com/clr
=0D
International Nike Mobilization: Analysis
[See accompanying alert for reports from local committees.]
=0D
THE NUMBERS:
=0D
By the time October 18th had arrived, we knew of protests planned in 13
countries: Australia, Canada, England, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia,=

The Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland and the Unit=
ed
States.
=0D
In the U.S., there were activities planned in at least 28 states: Arizona=
,
California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia=
,
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon,=

Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming.
=0D
Around the world, there were at least 84 communities and campuses which h=
ad
actions in support of the rights of Nike workers. This was truly a global=

protest!
=0D
MEDIA COVERAGE:
=0D
Mainstream media coverage included an Associated Press story about the
Portland demonstration, a story on the front page of the New York Times
sports section, a story in some editions of USA Today and local print and=

electronic media coverage in many communities.
=0D
But probably the coverage which reached the largest number of people was
that Gary Trudeau carried a week-long series on the October 18 protests i=
n
his syndicated Doonesbury comic strip. Trudeau has taken on Nike several
times in the past year. This time, he explicitly mentioned the October 18=

protests throughout the week.
=0D
GETTING NIKE'S ATTENTION:
=0D
An internal Nike memo (released by Justice. Do It Nike! in Portland) show=
ed
top executives strategizing how to diminish the effect of the internation=
al
Nike mobilization. During the weeks prior to the 18th, Nike had public
relations teams racing back and forth across the United States. Nike held=

press conferences, hosted a conference call with college newspaper editor=
s
from all over the U.S., held another conference call with writers and
editors for municipal newspapers, took out full-page ads in college
newspapers, had representatives handing out "Informed Consumer Updates" a=
t
football games and visited several campuses.
=0D
As the above list suggests (this was confirmed by a highly-placed
confidential source within Nike), the company is especially concerned abo=
ut
the campuses where students are protesting contracts between their
universities' athletics departments and Nike. Because of the contacts we
built up through this mobilization, Campaign for Labor Rights now is in
touch with students activists at a number of these schools, including: th=
e
University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), Penn State, the University of Illinoi=
s
at Champaign-Urbana, Florida State University (Tallahassee), the Universi=
ty
of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), the University of Oregon (Eugene) and
Colorado University (Boulder).
=0D
ARE WE WINNING?
=0D
Nike has taken some steps toward cleaning up its labor practices. Each
improvement has been a direct result of pressure from the Nike campaign =D0=

whose representatives the company vilifies. It is positive that Nike has=

set up a stitching center in Pakistan to prevent the use of child labor i=
n
the production of soccer balls =D0 even though the company refuses to all=
ow
independent monitors to inspect its stitching center. It is positive that=

Nike is mostly paying the minimum wage in Indonesia =D0 even though that =
is
not a living wage. It is positive that Nike is distributing wallet-size
versions of its code to workers =D0 even though the wording on the cards =
is
vague and there is no adequate monitoring system in place in Nike's facto=
ries.
=0D
These and other modest steps on Nike's part demonstrate that the company =
is
not immune to public pressure. In the past 13-14 months, Nike has
dramatically increased its public relations efforts to try to counter the=

human rights campaign. In the weeks leading up to the international
mobilization, the pace of PR activities picked up noticeably.
=0D
The fact that Nike is putting much more energy into disseminating
misinformation in response to the human rights campaign is a very positiv=
e
sign. Nike clearly understands that it has a major problem on its hands. =
The
company is going through a process of testing whether PR maneuvers can so=
lve
its problem. We firmly believe that Nike management eventually will reali=
ze
that the only viable PR maneuver is to come to terms with the core demand=
s
of the Nike human rights campaign:
=0D
* Pay a living wage based on an 8-hour day
* Stop requiring forced overtime
* Treat workers with respect
* Allow workers to join a union and bargain collectively
* Cooperate with monitoring by local nonprofit human rights and religio=
us
organizations
* Redress the claims of workers fired for seeking decent pay and workin=
g
conditions
=0D
NIKE TRIES AN 11TH-HOUR SURPRISE:
=0D
Two days before the international mobilization, with great fanfare, Nike
released in summary form a wage-and=D0needs study of Nike workers in Indo=
nesia
and Vietnam. According to the study, Nike workers are so well paid that t=
hey
are buying telephones, VCRs and motorbikes and still have money left over=
to
send home to family members. Certain points are worth raising about this
study. [Thanks to Max White, Jeff Ballinger and Medea Benjamin, all of wh=
om
contributed to this analysis.]
=0D
* Nike released a summary of the study just two days before the
international mobilization but refused to allow access to the study itsel=
f
until two weeks later. There is no way to discuss the validity of the
methodology without seeing the actual study. If this is such a great stud=
y,
why is Nike afraid to have it examined while it's still a hot news item?
=0D
* The authors of the study (faculty at the Amos Tuck School of Business=
at
Dartmouth College) also conducted a similar study for Disney =D0 with sim=
ilar
findings exonerating the Disney company of underpaying its Haitian
workforce. Subsequent investigation found the Disney report to be =D0 if =
not
outright fraudulent, then incompetent at best.
=0D
* Although Nike clearly hopes to buttress the credibility of this repor=
t
through the fact that it was done by academics at Dartmouth, in fact
releasing and publicizing a summary in advance of publishing the complete=

research study is in strong violation of accepted academic standards.
=0D
* The prime source of country income data is the World Bank, which also=

just happens to be one of the prime agents to causing poverty in the Thir=
d
World.
=0D
* The study seems not to take into account the extent to which forced
overtime influences workers' yearly wages.
=0D
* The study considers money sent home to families to be discretionary
income even though an International Labor Organization (ILO) study
demonstrated that Nike workers literally will starve themselves to the po=
int
of malnutrition in order to be able to send money home to family members.=

=0D

6,000 NIKE WORKERS ISSUE A REBUTTAL:
=0D
On October 16, Nike released the summary of the Dartmouth study, purporti=
ng
to prove that Nike workers are thrilled with all the money they receive f=
rom
their job. However, on October 13-15, 6,000 Nike workers went on strike i=
n
Indonesia to protest a Nike contractor's attempt to cheat them out of
legally-owed severance pay. In April of this year, 10,000 Indonesian Nike=

workers and 3,000 Vietnamese Nike workers went on strike. Whom are you go=
ing
to believe: some faculty and MBA students from Dartmouth or 19,000 Nike w=
orkers?
=0D
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
=0D
Because of the success of the October 18 mobilization, Campaign for Labor=

Rights is calling for another international Nike day of action in April o=
f
1998 =D0 the exact date still to be determined. We will organizing that e=
vent
from a point significantly ahead of where we started organizing for the
October action. We now have contact information for a global network of
national and local activists who are ready to show their support for the
rights of Nike's overseas workforce. We expect that network to grow betwe=
en
now and April. Like the October event, the emphasis in April will be on
local activities.
=0D
And, of course, Nike leafleting actions between now and April are most we=
lcome!
=0D
Campaign for Labor Rights is pulling together an alliance of activists on=

the campuses where Nike has contracts. Activists at the University of
Wisconsin (Madison), where Reebok has a contract, also have expressed an
interest in working with this alliance. In many cases, these activists
already have been engaged in the Guess campaign and other anti-sweatshop
work through the excellent outreach efforts of the UNITE textile workers =
union.
=0D
Campaign for Labor Rights urges this existing network of activists to rea=
ch
out to other constituencies in your communities: people of color, youth i=
n
the schools, communities of faith, organized labor.
=0D
Campaign for Labor Rights also urges local activists to broaden your
involvement in the sweatshop issue, if you have not already done so.
Consider some of the other important labor rights campaigns now needing o=
ur
support: the Hyundai boycott, the Guess boycott, the Disney campaign, the=

Gardenburger boycott. During the next few months, the Holiday of Conscien=
ce
and the National Labor Committee's petition drive are organizing activiti=
es
not to be missed. Please contact us if you would like to know how to
participate in these other struggles.
=0D
CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. For a sample copy, send your postal
address to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
To receive our email Labor Alerts, send a message to <c...@igc.apc.org> wi=
th
"labor alerts -- all campaigns" in the subject line or specify which labo=
r
issues interest you: Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala, Mexico=
,
Nicaragua, El Salvador, US farm workers, US poultry processing workers. =
If
you would like to receive information which falls outside those categorie=
s
(prison labor, workfare, other policy issues, additional briefing materia=
l
on some campaigns), indicate that you want to be on our Additional Labor
Information list as well as our All Campaigns list. To stop receiving th=
is
service, check to see whether you have received our alerts directly from =
us
or as a reposting via some other list. Send an email message to the addr=
ess
listed in the "return path" saying that you want to unsubscribe.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
IF YOU EXPERIENCE A BREAK IN OUR LABOR ALERT SERVICE, send us an email
verifying that you still want to receive our alerts and indicating which
lists (see above) you want to be on. For various technical reasons, many=

email messages are "bounced back." Our largest lists are now on an automa=
ted
system which drops any address which malfunctions, even if because of a
temporary problem with your email server. Although our alert system is
becoming automated, you can still communicate with a real person at Campa=
ign
for Labor Rights. Send your messages to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
***********************************************************
Date: Saturday, October 25, 1997 11:21:09 AM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org
Subj: Congressional sign-on letter to Nike

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410 http://www.compugraph.com/clr

Congressional Sign-On Letter to Nike

REQUESTED ACTION:
Please call your Congresspeople at 1-888-723-5246 (toll-free number) and =
ask
them to sign the letter to Nike now being circulated by Rep. Bernie Sande=
rs
(I-VT) and Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) See press release, below. In the fi=
rst
10 minutes of circulating the letter on the House floor, Rep. Sanders got=
19
signatures.

Note: Reps. Sanders and Kaptur are NOT calling for Nike to shut down its
Asian factories in order to provide jobs in the U.S. Both of these
Congresspeople believe that Nike has a responsibility to do right by its
existing workforce. The intent of their letter is that Nike should clean =
up
its sweatshop practices in Asia and should include the United States amon=
g
the sites for new expansion of production.

October 24, 1997

For Immediate Release

Congress of the United States
House of Representatives
Washington DC 20515-4501
Bernard Sanders

Member of Congress
Vermont, At Large
2202 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington DC 20515-4501

NIKE CORPORATE PRACTICES COME UNDER CONGRESSIONAL ATTACK

Congressman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio)=

announced today that they are circulating a letter for co-signatures to
members of Congress addressed to Nike CEO and President Philip Knight. T=
he
purpose of the letter is to ask Mr. Knight to meet with members of Congre=
ss
to discuss how his company can move forward to treat its Third World work=
ers
with respect, dignity, and decent wages and start manufacturing athletic
shoes in the United States.

The Sanders-Kaptur letter states, "As members of the United States Congre=
ss
we are deeply disappointed and embarrassed that a company like Nike,
headquartered in the United States, could be so directly involved in the
ruthless exploitation of hundreds of thousands of desperate Third World
workers, most of whom are women."

Furthermore, the letter continues, "According to Forbes magazine, as the
primary owner of Nike you are now one of the wealthiest people in the wor=
ld
- worth over $5 billion dollars. Sadly, while your personal wealth
continues to grow, you maintain a labor strategy which pays workers in As=
ia
pennies an hour."

Importantly, Sanders and Kaptur are also urging Knight to begin
consideration of how his company can invest in sneaker factories in the
United States. They pointedly stress; "While Nike employs hundreds of
thousands of people around the world to manufacture shoes, virtually none=

of these manufacturing workers live in the United States. Nike has led t=
he
way in abandoning the manufacturing workers of the United States and thei=
r
families as it produces its products in low-wage Third World countries."

"As we see it, you want American workers and their children to purchase y=
our
shoes," Sanders and Kaptur underscore, "but you don't believe that they
should earn a living wage by manufacturing them. In community after
community across America, as the real wages of American workers continue =
to
decline, there are working people who desperately desire decent-paying jo=
bs.
Nike could play an extraordinary role in rebuilding the manufacturing bas=
e
in St. Johnsbury, Vermont; Toledo, Ohio; Los Angeles, California or any o=
f a
thousand other cities. Yet, Nike travels the world in search of the
cheapest possible labor and turns its back on the very people you want to=

buy your products. Apparently, Nike believes that workers in the United
States are good enough to purchase your shoe products, but are no longer
worthy enough manufacture them."

CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
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---------------------------------------------------------------------
To receive our email Labor Alerts, send a message to <c...@igc.apc.org> wi=
th
"labor alerts -- all campaigns" in the subject line or specify which labo=
r
issues interest you: Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala, Mexico=
,
Nicaragua, El Salvador, US farm workers, US poultry processing workers. =
If
you would like to receive information which falls outside those categorie=
s
(prison labor, workfare, other policy issues, additional briefing materia=
l
on some campaigns), indicate that you want to be on our Additional Labor
Information list as well as our All Campaigns list. To stop receiving th=
is
service, check to see whether you have received our alerts directly from =
us
or as a reposting via some other list. Send an email message to the addr=
ess
listed in the "return path" saying that you want to unsubscribe.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
IF YOU EXPERIENCE A BREAK IN OUR LABOR ALERT SERVICE, send us an email
verifying that you still want to receive our alerts and indicating which
lists (see above) you want to be on. For various technical reasons, many=

email messages are "bounced back." Our largest lists are now on an automa=
ted
system which drops any address which malfunctions, even if because of a
temporary problem with your email server. Although our alert system is
becoming automated, you can still communicate with a real person at Campa=
ign
for Labor Rights. Send your messages to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
***********************************************************
Date: Saturday, October 25, 1997 12:19:55 PM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org
Subj: Nike: 2 interesting items

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410 http://www.compugraph.com/clr
=0D
Following are two interesting items about Nike
=0D
1) As Nike PR flacks raced back and forth across the country in recent we=
eks
to put out the fires of protest, they handed out thick folders of press
releases and other disinformation to repair the company's much-damaged
reputation. Probably, the packets varied a bit according to which materia=
ls
the Nike PR department had on hand at the moment. In at least some cases,=

the packets included an article (reprinted in color), produced by Jardine=

Fleming Research, a branch of Jardine Fleming International Securities
Limited. The title suggests Nike's oft-stated and doubtful claim that the=

company's sneaker factories have led the way for development in Asia:
"Tracking NIKE's Footprints across Asia: NIKE as a leading indicator of
economic success." There is an amazing subtext to this article =D0 amazin=
g
when you consider that Nike itself reprinted the piece in answer to its
critics. Consider the following passage:
=0D
"Nike likes a strong government
If we delve deeper into where NIKE has produced sneakers and its comments=

about political stability, we notice that NIKE tends to favour strong
governments. For example, NIKE was a major producer in both Korea and Tai=
wan
when these countries were largely under military rule. It currently favou=
rs
China, where the communists and only two men have led the country since
1949, and Indonesia where President Suharto has been in charge since 1967=
=2E
The communist party is still very much alive in Vietnam. Likewise, NIKE
never did move into the Philippines in a big way in the 1980s, a period w=
hen
democracy there flourished. Thailand's democracy movement of 1992 also
corresponded to NIKE's downgrading of production in that country."
=0D
That passage sheds some light on what is meant by "stringent labour laws"=
in
the following:
=0D
"NIKE management found that it was very hard to make sneakers in America,=

primarily because of much higher labour costs and more stringent labour =
laws."
=0D
Ah, if only we had a "strong" government like China's, we wouldn't have t=
o
worry about those stringent laws.
=0D

2) An article from the Washington Post
=0D
The Trouble With Role Models
=0D
By Nat Hentoff
October 25, 1997 The Washington Post =

=0D
In New York recently, a coalition of young people from 11 settlement hous=
es
let it be known that they would discard their old Nike sneakers at a Fift=
h
Avenue shoe store, The Sultanate of Swoosh.
=0D
As David Gonzalez reported in the New York Times, "They are part of a
growing movement that has criticized Nike for failing to pay workers in
Asian factories a living wage -- about $3 a day in Indonesia, for example=
--
while charging style-setting urban teenagers upward of $100 for the shoes=
=2E" =

=0D
As one of the protesters, Dulani Blake, explained: "Nike goes to differen=
t
countries so people can work for cheap." =

=0D
Meanwhile, Andrew Young, a hero of the civil rights movement and former
ambassador to the United Nations, has completed a report -- commissioned =
by
Nike -- that does say there is room for improvement in the working
conditions at factories manufacturing Nike footwear. But his overall
findings are so positive that Nike has celebrated the result of Andrew
Young's Asian journey in newspaper ads. =

=0D
When I called a publicity manager for Nike, she said, "Why, who could
possibly question Andrew Young's integrity?" =

=0D
In the Sept. 8 and 15 New Republic, Stephen Glass -- a journalist whose w=
ork
I have respected since his college days -- did considerable damage to Mr.=

Young's credibility ("The Young and the Feckless"). =

=0D
Among the many carefully detailed omissions and distortions in the Young
report is the highly embarrassing fact that Young, in talking with
Vietnamese workers, used Nike translators. As
Stephen Glass notes, Garry Trudeau -- in his widely syndicated comic stri=
p,
Doonesbury -- presented a Nike translator rendering "the [Asian] workers'=

pleas of mistreatment into joyous reports of a labor paradise."
=0D
Lest this growing disrespect for Nike become a groundswell, a Nike spokes=
man
visited a New York neighborhood center where the local sneaker protest am=
ong
kids began. The public relations professional declared: "Nobody has done
more than Nike in terms of leadership." He said this without benefit of
translation. =

=0D
The kids were not impressed. It might be a truly educational trip for And=
rew
Young to visit some of these youth centers. The kids might ask him why, i=
n
his report, he did not look at all into whether Nike pays its workers the=

home country's minimum wage. =

=0D
Not many youngsters may know of Andrew Young's previous civil rights reco=
rd,
but Michael Jordan is a superhero to kids throughout the nation.
=0D
After 13 years as a very effective salesman for Nike sneakers, Jordan has=

been elevated at the firm. There is a new Nike sub-brand, the JORDAN bran=
d,
for which kids will be saving their $20 bills. For his new division, Jord=
an
has recruited other professional basketball stars who, Nike says, represe=
nt
his "core basketball values." =

=0D
In the Sept. 9 USA Today, Jordan was asked what he thinks -- as a new
corporate executive -- of the growing attacks on Nike because of the work=
ing
conditions in its Asian factories. Jordan said: "I would certainly
investigate it, then deal with what the problems are. Right now, they're =
not
doing anything improper or illegal." Could the White House's Lanny Davis =
be
moonlighting as a counselor to Michael Jordan? =

=0D
Last year, Jesse Jackson, a colleague of Andrew Young in the Martin Luthe=
r
King Jr. days, spoke during a Tokyo press conference about the ethical
responsibilities of being a role model for America's young. As reported i=
n
the Journal of Commerce, "Mr. Jackson said athletes like Mr. Jordan `must=
be
part of the dialogue and be made aware of the conduct' of their sponsors.=

Today's athletes, he added, should get involved like former tennis great
Arthur Ashe, who honored the boycott of South Africa."
=0D
Young and Jordan, however, are role models for the free marketplace. =

=0D
Nike, meanwhile, is issuing further glossy reports about the Asian
factories. On Oct. 16, the company released preliminary studies by an MBA=

student team from Dartmouth's Tuck School of Business. Michael Jordan wil=
l
be glad to know that "Nike contract factory workers can meet basic needs
and, in addition, have income for discretionary spending or, in some case=
s,
savings." =

=0D
This Dartmouth study was commissioned -- surprise! -- by Nike. =

=0D
Meanwhile, the Hong Kong Christian Industrial Committee and the Asia Moni=
tor
Resource Centre have released quite another report -- this one on Chinese=

factories producing Nike goods: "Factories consistently violate minimum w=
age
laws; workers who become pregnant are often fired in violation of China's=

labor law granting workers maternity leave." Also, "gloves are not given =
to
all workers -- seven of whom have lost their fingers." =

=0D
So much for their hoop dreams.
=0D

CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. For a sample copy, send your postal
address to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
To receive our email Labor Alerts, send a message to <c...@igc.apc.org> wi=
th
"labor alerts -- all campaigns" in the subject line or specify which labo=
r
issues interest you: Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala, Mexico=
,
Nicaragua, El Salvador, US farm workers, US poultry processing workers. =
If
you would like to receive information which falls outside those categorie=
s
(prison labor, workfare, other policy issues, additional briefing materia=
l
on some campaigns), indicate that you want to be on our Additional Labor
Information list as well as our All Campaigns list. To stop receiving th=
is
service, check to see whether you have received our alerts directly from =
us
or as a reposting via some other list. Send an email message to the addr=
ess
listed in the "return path" saying that you want to unsubscribe.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
IF YOU EXPERIENCE A BREAK IN OUR LABOR ALERT SERVICE, send us an email
verifying that you still want to receive our alerts and indicating which
lists (see above) you want to be on. For various technical reasons, many=

email messages are "bounced back." Our largest lists are now on an automa=
ted
system which drops any address which malfunctions, even if because of a
temporary problem with your email server. Although our alert system is
becoming automated, you can still communicate with a real person at Campa=
ign
for Labor Rights. Send your messages to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
***********************************************************
Date: Monday, October 27, 1997 12:41:20 PM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org
Subj: Women's groups vs. Nike

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410

Nike Supports Women in Its Ads but Not Its Factories, Groups Say
By Steven Greenhouse
New York Times October 26, 1997

A coalition of women's groups has attacked Nike as hypocritical for its n=
ew
television commercials that feature female athletes, asserting that
something is wrong when the company calls for empowering American women b=
ut
pays its largely female overseas work force poorly.

The commercials show women saying they will be stronger, healthier and mo=
re
independent if they are allowed to play sports.

In a letter to Nike's chairman, Philip Knight, the coalition, which inclu=
des
the National Organization for Women and the Ms. Foundation for Women, wro=
te,
"While the women who wear Nike shoes in the United States are encouraged =
to
perform their best, the Indonesian, Vietnamese and Chinese women making t=
he
shoes often suffer from inadequate wages, corporal punishment, forced
overtime and/or sexual harassment."

Eleanor Smeal, president of Feminist Majority, a research and advocacy
group, said: "The message in the empowerment ad is strong, but there's a
disconnect between that message and the way Nike pays and treats its
workers, especially its women workers. The sweatshops, which all of us
thought were a thing of the past, are back again. And just like the
feminists at the turn of the century fought them, it's incumbent on us to=
do
the same."

Nike's factories have become a target for labor rights groups, which have=

repeatedly said that they pay too little and force workers to toil in poo=
r
conditions. Global Exchange, a human rights group in San Francisco that h=
as
often attacked Nike, seized on the new television commercials to rally
women's groups behind a new effort to criticize the company.

The coalition is calling on Nike to let local independent monitors inspec=
t
factories in Asia and to increase pay, suggesting that its wages in Vietn=
am
be raised to $3 a day from $1.60 a day. Vada Manager, a Nike spokesman, s=
aid
the women's groups misunderstood Nike's role in Asia, adding that its
factories in Vietnam, Indonesia and China pay considerably more than do m=
ost
factories in those countries.

"Nike has created some 500,000 superior jobs with good wages around the
world in developing economies," Manager said. "The job opportunities that=
we
have provided to women and men in developing economies like Vietnam and
Indonesia have provided a bridge of opportunity for these individuals to
have a much better quality of life."

Ms. Smeal said, "We think it's great they're providing jobs. It's just th=
at
the level of the wages should be increased and the working conditions
improved." Others who signed the letter to Nike include Alice Walker, the=

author, Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., the Black Women's Agenda and the
Coalition of Labor Union Women.

The coalition's letter said many of Nike's workers in Vietnam could "bare=
ly
afford three meals a day let alone transportation, rent, clothing, health=

care and much more." But Nike officials pointed to a recent study by
Dartmouth College researchers that concluded that Nike's daily wages in
Vietnam were four times the cost of obtaining three meals a day there.

The letter also faulted Nike for physically abusing workers, referring to=
an
incident in Vietnam in which a manager punished workers by making them ru=
n
laps in the sun.

Manager acknowledged occasional abuses and said the abusive managers had
been dismissed. He added that the company's factories had passed inspecti=
ons
by Andrew Young, the civil rights leader.

[Note from Thuyen Nguyen, of the Vietnam Labor Watch: "It must be noted t=
hat
Nike has been refusing to sign a living wage provision as proposed by
President Clinton's Apparel Industry Partnership, yet at the same time th=
e
company has been telling people that they are paying above a living wage =
in
Vietnam and indonesia."]

CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. For a sample copy, send your postal
address to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
To receive our email Labor Alerts, send a message to <c...@igc.apc.org> wi=
th
"labor alerts -- all campaigns" in the subject line or specify which labo=
r
issues interest you: Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala, Mexico=
,
Nicaragua, El Salvador, US farm workers, US poultry processing workers. =
If
you would like to receive information which falls outside those categorie=
s
(prison labor, workfare, other policy issues, additional briefing materia=
l
on some campaigns), indicate that you want to be on our Additional Labor
Information list as well as our All Campaigns list. To stop receiving th=
is
service, check to see whether you have received our alerts directly from =
us
or as a reposting via some other list. Send an email message to the addr=
ess
listed in the "return path" saying that you want to unsubscribe.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
IF YOU EXPERIENCE A BREAK IN OUR LABOR ALERT SERVICE, send us an email
verifying that you still want to receive our alerts and indicating which
lists (see above) you want to be on. For various technical reasons, many=

email messages are "bounced back." Our largest lists are now on an automa=
ted
system which drops any address which malfunctions, even if because of a
temporary problem with your email server. Although our alert system is
becoming automated, you can still communicate with a real person at Campa=
ign
for Labor Rights. Send your messages to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
***********************************************************
Date: Monday, November 3, 1997 8:54:06 AM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org
Subj: Nike Update 11/2/97

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410 http://www.compugraph.com/clr

Nike Update: November 2, 1997

1) We pass along part of a recent UPI story. California State Assemblywom=
an
Dion Aroner joins a growing list of prominent people who are coming forwa=
rd
to denounce Nike's labor practices. Other recent events included:

A letter to Nike from a women's coalition including: the National
Organization for Women, the Ms. Foundation for Women, the Feminist Majori=
ty
and author Alice Walker.

A sign-on letter to Nike being circulated in the U.S. House of
Representatives by Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Marcy Kaptur (D-OH).

Nike labor practices hit at Capitol

SACRAMENTO, Oct. 28 (UPI) _ State Assemblywoman Dion Aroner has launched =
a
public awareness campaign aimed at persuading the Nike Co. to stop what s=
he
says is the exploitation of women workers at Asian shoe factories.

The Berkeley Democrat held a Capitol news conference today to call attent=
ion
to the so-called sweatshop issue, although she stopped short of calling f=
or
a boycott of Nike products.

Aroner says U.S. consumers targeted by Nike's current ``female empowermen=
t''
ads must decide for themselves whether to buy $100 Nike shoes. But she
suggested they may not buy them once they learn the human cost to Asian
women who comprise 90 percent of the labor force that make the shoes.

2) University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill) students from the Nike
Awareness Campaign met on October 31 with former North Carolina basketbal=
l
coach Dean Smith to discuss their opposition to the school's $7.1 million=

contract with Nike. Smith now has a personal contract with Nike to promot=
e
the company's products. Students who participated in the meeting found Sm=
ith
cooperative although he has relied entirely on Nike sources for informati=
on
about the company's labor practices.

3) Nike still has refused to release the wage-and-needs study it
commissioned from Dartmouth College. Nike so far has released only a summ=
ary
of the document, with great fanfare in the press. According to the study'=
s
authors, Nike employees not only make a living wage but they have
significant amounts of discretionary income. Human rights advocates point=

out, however, that Nike continues to resist a provision for a living wage=

being included in the accord of the Apparel Industry Partnership. If Nike=

truly were paying a living wage, say these advocates, then why does the
company not agree to such a provision in the accord?

Nike representatives met with four journalists at about the same time it
released a summary of the Dartmouth report. In that meeting, a Nike
spokesperson claimed that a family of four could live on the Indonesian
minimum wage. The government of Indonesia has stated that the minimum wag=
e
there is inadequate to meet the needs of even a single worker.

4) Students at Arizona State University are now organizing to prevent the=
ir
university from signing a proposed $1 million/year contract to have all o=
f
its teams outfitted with Nike gear. ASU joins a number of other schools
where students are protesting such contracts.

CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. For a sample copy, send your postal
address to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
To receive our email Labor Alerts, send a message to <c...@igc.apc.org> wi=
th
"labor alerts -- all campaigns" in the subject line or specify which labo=
r
issues interest you: Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala, Mexico=
,
Nicaragua, El Salvador, US farm workers, US poultry processing workers. =
If
you would like to receive information which falls outside those categorie=
s
(prison labor, workfare, other policy issues, additional briefing materia=
l
on some campaigns), indicate that you want to be on our Additional Labor
Information list as well as our All Campaigns list. To stop receiving th=
is
service, check to see whether you have received our alerts directly from =
us
or as a reposting via some other list. Send an email message to the addr=
ess
listed in the "return path" saying that you want to unsubscribe.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
IF YOU EXPERIENCE A BREAK IN OUR LABOR ALERT SERVICE, send us an email
verifying that you still want to receive our alerts and indicating which
lists (see above) you want to be on. For various technical reasons, many=

email messages are "bounced back." Our largest lists are now on an automa=
ted
system which drops any address which malfunctions, even if because of a
temporary problem with your email server. Although our alert system is
becoming automated, you can still communicate with a real person at Campa=
ign
for Labor Rights. Send your messages to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
***********************************************************
Date: Tuesday, November 4, 1997 5:08:30 PM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org
Subj: Nike campus activism

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410 http://www.compugraph.com/clr

Nike Campus Activism

Students, faculty and staff at a number of universities are protesting th=
eir
schools' contracts with Nike. Some of these are multi-million-dollar,
wall-to-wall contracts covering virtually every team in the athletic
department. Some are for only selected teams. In one case (the University=
of
Ottawa), the contract is with faculty of the Human Kinetics Department, t=
o
do product research for Nike ice skates. Also, students at the University=
of
Wisconsin are concerned about their school's contract with Reebok and wou=
ld
like to link up with students at the Nike-contract campuses.

We encourage activists at different schools to communicate with each othe=
r
and share information. Following are some of the contacts we have develop=
ed.
Please notify Campaign for Labor Rights if your school has a Nike contrac=
t
and is not listed below. We would like to work with you.

CONTACTS:

University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill):
Marion Traub-Warner, Jeff Jones and Todd Pugatch
mtr...@email.unc.edu, jwj...@email.unc.edu, pug...@email.unc.edu

Penn State University (College Park)
Adam Black , ajb...@psu.edu

Florida State University (Tallahassee)
Ed Dandrow, edan...@mailer.fsu.edu

University of Michigan (Ann Arbor)
Rich Goff, RW...@aol.com

Arizona State University (Phoenix)
Andy English, aeng...@crl.com

University of Arizona (Tucson)
James F Tracy jtr...@U.Arizona.EDU

Brock University (Niagara Falls, ON)
Blain Butyniec, cord...@niagara.com

University of Colorado (Boulder)
Ann Krohn Rick, Ann....@colorado.edu

University of Ottawa (Ottawa, ON)
Genevieve Rail, gen...@uottawa.ca

University of Oregon (Eugene)
Ben Unger, asu...@gladstone.uoregon.edu

University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign)
Dennis Grammenos, dgra...@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu

University of Kentucky (Lexington)
Kyle Browning, brow...@cjnetworks.com

University of Wisconsin (Madison)
Ben Manski, brma...@students.wisc.edu

University of California (Irvine)
Alain Dang al...@ea.oac.uci.edu

RESEARCHING YOUR SCHOOL'S CONTRACT:

If you are uncertain whether any teams at your school are covered by a Ni=
ke
contract, a simple phone call to the athletic department should get you t=
he
information you need. If the contract covers only select teams, write dow=
n
which teams are included, noting whether each is a men's or women's team.=

Next, you should try to get hold of a copy of the contract. If your state=

has an open-records law, this should be easy. It's generally been simple =
for
students to get a copy of the contracts. These tend to be similar from
campus to campus. Make special note of an provision which seems to limit
freedom of speech by university staff or athletes. Also, try to find out
exactly how much money some of the coaches stand to make personally from =
the
contracts they sign with Nike.

LOOKING FOR ALLIES:

If you are a concerned individual, not part of an organization working on=

the Nike sweatshop/Nike contract issue, your next job is to find allies. =
Two
steps are helpful:

1) Write a letter to the editor of the campus paper, expressing your
concerns and giving a way for other concerned people to contact you.

2) Go to the building where campus organizations have their offices and
start asking questions. If there is not already a student group working o=
n
this issue, there almost certainly is one which would be interested in
adding this issue to the list of causes which it promotes. Check out whet=
her
there already is a labor action group on campus.

3) Once you have a core group or have found a pre-existing organization
willing to take up the Nike contract issue, start to make alliances with
other campus organizations, such as:

Asian student groups
African American student groups
Latin America solidarity groups
Amnesty International
East Timor Action Network (ETAN)
Women's groups
The graduate teaching fellows union or association
Other unions representing campus staff
Progressive faculty
Community-based organizations and union locals

Remember when seeking allies: If you are asking them to show support for
your cause, you need to show support for theirs. When you have a rally, m=
ake
sure that representatives of your ally organizations have a chance to spe=
ak
and to draw the connections between Nike sweatshops and the issues they a=
re
working on.

DON'T WRITE OFF THE ATHLETES:

Some of the athletes on these teams may resent having to become walking
billboards for a logo which is synonymous with sweatshops. In all of your=

publicity, extend an invitation to those people of conscience who happen =
to
be on the teams with Nike contracts.

GETTING RELIABLE INFORMATION:

Campaign for Labor Rights has a Nike action packet, constantly updated. I=
t
is available free via email and in hard copy for $5.00. Notice that the
"resources" section of the action packet lists a number of articles and
alerts on Nike in our document library. We can send any of these articles=
to
you via email.

Subscribe to our free email Nike labor alerts service (see below) and bec=
ome
a member/subscriber to our hard copy newsletter, which covers all of the
major sweatshop and child labor campaigns.

As we receive information from you, we will put together a special Nike
action packet for campus activists.

WHEN NIKE PR REPS COME TO CAMPUS:

Nike has some very smooth talkers who are traveling from campus to campus=
,
handing out handsomely printed packets of disinformation. If a Nike publi=
c
relations rep asks to have a private meeting with your student government=

association, request that Nike critics also be allowed to attend. Contact=

Campaign for Labor Rights by phone or email so that we can talk about how=
to
deal with Nike's PR machine.

If you attend the meeting with the Nike rep, get a copy of Nike's packet =
and
read it carefully.

SPEAKERS ARE AVAILABLE:

If your group can find the money for an airline ticket, Campaign for Labo=
r
Rights can arrange for a speaker to come to your campus to talk about the=

campaign to win justice for Nike's production workers. There is no speake=
r's
fee.

CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. For a sample copy, send your postal
address to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
To receive our email Labor Alerts, send a message to <c...@igc.apc.org> wi=
th
"labor alerts -- all campaigns" in the subject line or specify which labo=
r
issues interest you: Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala, Mexico=
,
Nicaragua, El Salvador, US farm workers, US poultry processing workers. =
If
you would like to receive information which falls outside those categorie=
s
(prison labor, workfare, other policy issues, additional briefing materia=
l
on some campaigns), indicate that you want to be on our Additional Labor
Information list as well as our All Campaigns list. To stop receiving th=
is
service, check to see whether you have received our alerts directly from =
us
or as a reposting via some other list. Send an email message to the addr=
ess
listed in the "return path" saying that you want to unsubscribe.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
IF YOU EXPERIENCE A BREAK IN OUR LABOR ALERT SERVICE, send us an email
verifying that you still want to receive our alerts and indicating which
lists (see above) you want to be on. For various technical reasons, many=

email messages are "bounced back." Our largest lists are now on an automa=
ted
system which drops any address which malfunctions, even if because of a
temporary problem with your email server. Although our alert system is
becoming automated, you can still communicate with a real person at Campa=
ign
for Labor Rights. Send your messages to <c...@igc.apc.org>.
***********************************************************
Date: Wednesday, November 5, 1997 10:14:30 PM
From: cl...@igc.apc.org
Subj: Duke anti-sweatshop policy

Labor Alerts/Labor News
a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
<c...@igc.apc.org> (541) 344-5410 http://www.compugraph.com/clr

[The following article indicates a hopeful sign. If Duke goes ahead with =
its
plans to make fair labor standards a condition for licensing agreements,
then human rights advocates at Duke would have a solid basis for opposing=

new contractual arrangements with companies notorious for their sweatshop=

practices. And, if such a standard could be adopted more generally by oth=
er
schools, this would represent a very significant step forward. We should,=

however, not pin all of our hopes on such standards. Still at issue will =
be
the question of who decides whether a given company has unfair labor
practices. Will universities hungry for multi-million-dollar deals be
tempted to rely on companies' own say-so that they do not abuse or exploi=
t
their workers? Policy changes are an important step. It is just as import=
ant
for campus activists to make their voices heard so that companies such as=

Nike, Disney and Guess are not given an undeserved seal of approval by
athletic coaches or university administrators. Policy is never a substitu=
te
for popular action.]

Duke Requires Anti-Sweatshop Pledge

November 3, 1997; DURHAM, N.C. (AP) -- Duke University is working on
licensing standards that would require manufacturers of items bearing the=

school logo to disclose the working conditions of their employees.

The move follows a late-September campaign by 20 Duke students against wh=
at
they call sweatshop conditions in many overseas manufacturing operations.=

``We're not trying to boycott one country or one company,'' Duke junior B=
en
Au said. ``We're trying to make sure the entire system is correct.''

The ``Students Against Sweatshops'' campaign, which emerged from a resear=
ch
project in New York City this summer, has more than 30 university chapter=
s,
said Duke senior and SAS organizer Tico Almeida.

The code of conduct being worked on by Duke and Collegiate Licensing Co.,=
an
Atlanta-based firm that negotiates trademark deals for 160 universities,
will require companies to fully disclose working conditions.

``It's important for us, as an institution, to ensure that people who are=

manufacturing products bearing our (trade)marks are conducting themselves=
in
an ethical manner,'' said Jim Wilkerson, director of Duke Stores operatio=
ns
and trademark licensing.

``I don't have any firsthand knowledge of a lot of problems out there. Bu=
t
we want to make the university's position very clear, and that is that we=

are totally opposed to products being manufactured in sweatshops or force=
d
labor or abusive conditions.'' The students sent a letter to Duke preside=
nt
Nan Keohane on Sept. 12 asking her to push for a policy that would guaran=
tee
Duke merchandise had no links to sweatshops. They followed up that effort=

with a mass e-mailing to her on Oct. 3 from student organizations.

Keohane responded Oct. 7. ``I wanted to let you know that Duke has take=
n
action on this issue, updating our contract with (Collegiate Licensing Co=
=2E)
in August,'' Keohane wrote. The update included a paragraph inserted in=
to
the university's contract with the licensing company.

``The university and CLC are opposed to any actions by licensees that wou=
ld
constitute unfair labor practices or labor abuse,'' the clause stated.
``Accordingly, CLC will use its best efforts to ensure that licensees adh=
ere
to proper labor practices and provide safe working conditions, and refrai=
n
from hiring persons under such conditions that association with (the)
university would compromise the integrity and dignity of the university.'=
'

The students have met twice with administrators to talk about the new
licensing code of conduct. A final version is expected by the end of this=
month.

Duke is one of a handful of schools, including Notre Dame, now revising
their contracts to include a code of conduct for manufacturers, said Bruc=
e
Siegal, CLC vice president and general counsel.

``When top schools, such as Duke, come out and pay attention to this issu=
e,
I wouldn't be surprised if other colleges don't jump on the bandwagon,''
Siegal said.

On Friday, students at the University of North Carolina met with former
basketball coach Dean Smith about alleged working conditions in Nike's
overseas factories. Nike has contracts with both Smith and Duke basketbal=
l
coach Mike Krzyzewski.

CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS newsletter subscriptions: Send $35.00 to 1247 =
"E"
Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. For a sample copy, send your postal
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