Lucas county to vote on historic Sweatshop-Free policy
Proactive policy would help ensure
taxpayer dollars are not spent on sweatshop labor
For
immediate release: June 2,
2008
Contact: Victoria Kaplan, SweatFree Communities,574-975-6207
Ben Konop, Lucas County
Commissioner, 419-213-2133
Lucas
County Commissioner Ben Konop on Monday will be joined by local and national
labor leaders, community religious leaders, and workers rights advocates to
announce a proposed anti-sweatshop resolution governing purchases by Lucas County
government. A rally in support of the resolution will take place Monday,
June 2nd, at 2 P.M. on the steps of Government
Center. The move comes as
a statewide campaign is being prepared to make the entire state of Ohio end its tax dollar
support of sweatshops.
“The use
of sweatshop labor is unacceptable in the 21st Century. Our community
values human rights and workers rights and, as such, we should not be spending
taxpayer dollars on businesses that rely on inhumane and unsafe labor practices
to make a buck,” stated Commissioner Konop.
“We
applaud Lucas County commissioners for their
commitment to end tax dollar support for sweatshops,” said Victoria Kaplan,
Midwest Regional Organizer for SweatFree Communities. “We look forward to
Governor Strickland following Lucas
County’s lead to make our
entire state sweatshop-free.”
The
proposed policy will be one of the most aggressive anti-sweatshop resolutions
in Ohio and
nationwide. Under the proposed policy, which will be voted on at
Tuesday's Commissioners hearing, Lucas
County will require contractors to
certify that they are not using sweatshop labor in the manufacture of garments,
uniforms, or related materials purchased with Lucas County
taxpayer dollars.
The
policy mandates that these contractors doing business with the county pay their
workers at production facilities a living wage, adjusted by labor market; that
they be afforded the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining;
and be provided with safe working conditions and a non-discriminatory working
environment.
The
policy also includes a commitment for Lucas County
to join a national Sweatfree Consortium of local and state governments opposed
to spending taxpayer dollars on sweatshop labor. The national consortium,
organized by SweatFree Communities, will pool purchasing power and create
economies of scale, helping create a viable market for sweatfree manufacturing.
“If this
resolution is passed, Lucas
County will be amongst
the nation's leaders in this global human rights initiative,” stated
Konop. “Simply stated, it's the right thing to do morally. Our
community expects workers to be treated and compensated fairly and taxpayer
dollars to be spent responsibly,” concluded Konop.
###
SweatFree
Communities coordinates
a national network of grassroots campaigns that promote humane working
conditions in apparel and other labor-intensive global industries by working
with both public and religious institutions to adopt sweatshop-free purchasing policies.
Using institutional purchasing as a lever for worker justice, the sweatfree
movement empowers ordinary people to create a just global economy through local
action. Learn more at www.sweatfree.org
The
State and Local Government Sweatfree Consortium, comprised of states, cities,
counties, local government agencies, and school districts, as well as human
rights advocates and labor rights experts, will pool resources of public
entities to investigate working conditions in factories that make uniforms and
other products for public employees. Cities and states will hold vendors to the
same standards, use the same independent monitor for enforcement, and create a
market large enough to persuade companies to deal responsibly and ethically
with their suppliers and workers. Learn more at www.sweatfree.org/sweatfreeconsortium
###
