Primary links
On November 23, workers at the Vaqueros Navarra jean factory in Tehuacan, Mexico stood up to their employer and voted to be represented by an independent union.
On October 28, a UK newspaper published an exposé on child labour in India, revealing that clothes bearing the GapKids label were being made by children as young as 10 years old. Gap is acting on the matter – but will its actions prevent future violations?
In response to a request from MSN, six major US apparel brands that buy blue jeans from Mexican jean manufacturer Grupo Navarra are speaking out in favour of the right of workers employed at the Vaqueros Navarra factory in Tehuacan, Mexico to be represented by the union of their free choice.
In an attempt to silence critics of the India-based manufacturer Fibres and Fabrics International, the Indian court issued arrest warrants against seven staff members of the Clean Clothes Campaign and the India Committee of the Netherlands. The Clean Clothes Campaign is seeking international support on the matter.
Despite growing pressure on the Philippine government to put a stop to the violence and entra-judicial killings of trade unionists and human rights activists, attacks continue. It is believed that the attacks are sanctioned by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) and its police force.
When Gildan Activewear announced the closure of two of its factories in the State of Coahuila in northern Mexico last March, workers had reason to be worried. But after a series of discussions with MSN and the local labour rights organization SEDEPAC, Gildan has set a precedent for workers who are used to being denied even their legal entitlements.
Canadian church, human rights and trade union organizations, including MSN, are calling on Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to launch an independent investigation into recent armed attacks and death threats against striking workers at the Chong Won Fashion garment factory.
Amsterdam - Following their efforts to draw attention to rights violations at an Indian garment factory, the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) and the India Committee of the Netherlands (ICN) were summoned to appear in a Bangalore court on June 25, 2007. The Dutch organizations, who have been raising awareness of violations at international jeans suppliers Fibres and Fabrics International and its 100% subsidiary Jeans Knit Pvt Ltd (FFI/JKPL), are accused of cyber crime, acts of racist and xenophobic nature and criminal defamation. Click here to take action now!
Ottawa has become Canada's fourth major No Sweat city. Unanimously adopted, Ottawa's Ethical Purchasing Policy is complaints-based and requires suppliers to uphold International Labour Organization (ILO) standards. It covers Ottawa's apparel and fair trade products such as coffee and tea.
On April 16-18, representatives of major international clothing brands, apparel manufacturers, governments from developing countries, trade unions, non-governmental organizations, and the International Labour Organization (ILO) came together in Toronto for the third international meeting of the MFA Forum.
Unless otherwise noted, all work on this website is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 Canada License.