Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Recently, a unionized apparel factory in Honduras called Jerzees de Honduras was shut down by Russell Athletic. Nearly 2,000 workers have been put out of work for nothing more than attempting to improve their working conditions. Since the closure, union leaders have received death threats, and many workers are in danger of being blacklisted (meaning they won’t be able to get work at other factories).
You might be wondering why you, as a KU student, should care. Here’s why: Until its closure, this factory produced clothing bearing our university’s name.
The workers at Jerzees de Honduras have been fighting for their rights for several years. After a hard-won battle, Jerzees became one of the only unionized factories in the Russell supply chain. Unfortunately, this victory did not last, and in the middle of negotiations for better wages and working conditions, Russell announced its decision to close the factory. Russell has claimed purely economic reasons for its decision. However, Jerzees was Russell’s only unionized factory in Honduras, and the company is not closing any of its non-unionized factories in the country!
Russell’s actions are in blatant violation of the University’s labor code of conduct. This agreement requires the company to respect workers’ right to freedom of association and collective bargaining, among other things. Allowing Russell to cut and run from Jerzees sends the message that our code of conduct is worthless to the workers who produce KU apparel. Worse, it signals to other companies that the shameless exploitation of workers will be tolerated without penalization.
It’s absolutely critical that the University take immediate action to reverse the damage that has been done to workers’ rights. In light of Russell’s conduct and its history of workers’ rights violations, it seems that the necessary course of action is to sever our licensing contract with Russell.
So far, 21 major universities have cut their contracts with Russell, including Duke, Harvard, Michigan, Penn State, NYU and even UNC. Our administration has chosen to “wait and see” whether Russell will comply with our code of conduct.
Unfortunately, corporations don’t usually alter their behavior out of the goodness of their hearts. As KU students, we cannot allow our administration to stand idly by. We have the power, and the responsibility, to demand that our apparel be produced under conditions that respect human rights.
— Carrie Mendoza is a Hutchinson senior and a member of KU Students Against Sweatshops
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Comments
Mendoza: KU should cut Russell Athletic’s contract after worker rights violations
Well done Carrie. Your piece is short, to the point, provides facts and suggests an action. I couldn't ask for more in a column.
On top of that you make a good point. It's high time the University take some action and do the right thing.
Mendoza: KU should cut Russell Athletic’s contract after worker rights violations
I work with Russell, and I'd like to respond to the false accusation that we closed this plant because it was unionized. We had already recognized this plant's union status in October 2007, more than a year before announcing the closure. The Fair Labor Association, as well as an independent report it commissioned both agreed: it was imperative for us to close one of our three fleece plants in Honduras because of the global economic slowdown. The independent report also confirmed the two reasons why we chose this plant in particular: 1) The need for products sewn there was lower than any of our other factories in Honduras. And 2) it was the only one with a lease we could vacate immediately, which conserved $2 million in avoidable costs.
The current economic situation has hit the apparel industry hard. Russell has had to close eight plants, seven of them non-union. It's not just our business, a total of 25 manufacturing plants in Honduras have closed in the last year.
Those who are taking deliberate and unjustified actions to hurt Russell's business and reputation cannot be acting in the best interests of Honduran workers who depend on Russell for their livelihood. If you'd like to know more about how we treat our workers, please visit www.russellsocialresponsibility.com. And if you'd like to read the independent report, please visit http://www.fairlabor.org/images/NewsandPublications/NewsReleasesandStatements2008/NewsReleasesandStatements2009/jerzees_de_honduras_hq_investigation_oct_2008.pdf.
Mendoza: KU should cut Russell Athletic’s contract after worker rights violations
It is misleading to claim that the Fair Labor Association found that Jerzees de Honduras was closed due to economic reasons when the most recent report states clearly that "the closure of the factory has been determined, at least to a significant extent, by the existence and activity of the union." This report can be found at http://www.fairlabor.org/images/NewsandPublications/NewsReleasesandStatements2008/NewsReleasesandStatements2009/jerzees_de_honduras_second_jdh_investigation_jan_2009.pdf
To claim that you had already recognized this plant's union status in October 2007 is irrelevant as you closed the plant during the midst of the first collective bargaining agreement with the union. Until that point you had not been forced to change the labor practices within the Jerzees de Honduras factory.
The Worker Rights Consortium Report on Jerzees de Honduras found the following evidence supporting the finding that anti-union sentiment was a motive for the closure decision: 1)The timing of the closure announcement in the context of negotiations with the plant’s union (three business days after the union declared an impasse in bargaining). 2)Threats by management prior to the closure that the facility would close because of workers’ exercise of associational rights. 3) Admissions by management after the closure announcement that the decision was related to workers’ associational activities. 4) Other conduct by management demonstrating continued hostility to workers’ exercise of their associational rights. The Worker Rights Consortium report can be found at http://www.workersrights.org/RussellRightsViolations.asp.
We will stop taking actions against Russell's business when you stop taking deliberate and unjustified actions against the human rights of workers around the world.
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