January 2010
In this issue:
1) Please show
your support!
2) 12 more days to vote for your
hero
3) What makes clothes Fair Trade?
4) Milwaukee police uniform
contract awarded
5) New media tool raises $ for SFC
6) Bring our tour
"Sweatshop Workers Speak Out" to town
7) Job opening at U.S.-El Salvador
Sister Cities Network
Please show your support!
To
meet our winter fundraising drive goals, we need to secure 15 new sustainers by
February 1st. Our Sweatfree Sustainers donate a small amount monthly - $10, $15,
$20 or more. This ensures us sustainable income and allows us to focus more time
on organizing instead of fundraising. Please signal your support of the
sweatfree movement by becoming a Sustainer today!
Thank you!
12 more days to vote for your hero
We will be naming our Sustainers program after a person who has inspired the international movement for worker justice. You have until February 1st to nominate your workers' rights hero. It only takes a minute to submit a nomination online -- please weigh in!
What
makes clothes Fair Trade?
TransFair, which certifies goods like coffee, tea, chocolate and bananas in the United States, is now developing a standard for Fair Trade apparel. But what standards should factories and buyers meet to earn the Fair Trade label? TransFair has released a draft of their standards online. SweatFree Communities and allies sent a joint letter to TransFair signaling that we would need to see the standard strengthened, particularly in the areas of living wages and freedom of association, before we could get behind the effort. We are awaiting a response from TransFair, which is planning to start the pilot program this spring.
Milwaukee police uniform contract finally awarded; the work to protect the workers who make them begins now
After a year-long debate over a $1 million Milwaukee police uniform contract extensively covered in local media (Dec. 1, 2008, Dec. 28, 2009, Jan. 6, 2010, Jan. 12, 2010), Milwaukee police and area residents know quite a bit about the origins of the uniforms. The competitive bid featured U.S. union-made uniforms on one side, and Chinese-made uniforms on the other. Two independent preliminary investigations indicated severe labor rights violations in the Chinese factory, including below poverty wages and excessive working hours. To the surprise of many, the bid with the U.S. union-made uniforms came in lower, even significantly lower, than the competition. Also surprising many observers, the city chose the more expensive Chinese-made uniforms, which police preferred. Read on...
New
media tool raises $ for SFC
Until January 31st, each time you use 3bl.me to shrink urls, 3BL Media will contribute 1 cent to be split equally among three non-profit beneficiaries, which this month includes SweatFree Communities. This could mean as much as $3500 for our work to defend and promote workers' rights. Try it out! 3bl.me and help raise money for SFC by spreading the word. Post on facebook and tell your twittering and blogging friends!
Bring our tour "Sweatshop Workers Speak Out" to town
Do
you live in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, or DC? Then consider bringing our April 2010 Speaking Tour to
town. Featuring a Bangladeshi garment worker who sews uniforms for government
entities in the United States, the tour aims to build solidarity between U.S.
communities and Bangladeshi garment workers. Each tour event will focus on
action steps that are relevant for local sweatfree organizing, whether to help
ignite a new campaign or bring an active campaign to the next level. For more
information about the tour, please contact tour@sweatfree.org or call
413-586-0974.
Job opening: U.S.-El Salvador Sister Cities Network
Our friends at U.S.-El Salvador Sister Cities Network are searching for a co-coordinator, to be based in El Salvador. The Network is a grassroots organization made up of communities and individuals in the United States that maintain ongoing partnerships with rural communities in El Salvador to protect human rights, build solidarity, and support. For a copy of the job announcement, click here.
