The Gap, a clothing retailer, has reached an agreement with the National Labor Committee and the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees. In the agreement, released in December, the Gap pledges to suspend its relationship with Mandarin International, a textile plant In El Salvador, until Mandarin improves its labor practices.
NLC and UNITE began organizing protests last summer after Mandarin fired 100 union members. The firm was also accused of harassing any workers suspected of union organizing.
For months afterward, the Gap denied responsibility for the behavior of its contractor. But labor activists in this country refused to accept that response.
NLC and UNITE raised public awareness of the Gap's complacency. Consumers reacted by calling and writing the company's corporate offices.
"The message is clear: If you make it you're responsible", said NLC executive director Charles Kernaghan.
The Gap has agreed to use the Human Rights Ombudsman offices in Central America to monitor factory compliance wlth labor guidelines and to seek improvements in monitoring its contractors. Human rights officials will be given immediate access to Gap factories. The Gap will also require Mandarin to hire back the union members it fired.
UNITE President Jay Mazur said the agreement with the Gap is "a victory for all of us who are determined to eliminate sweatshops at home and abroad."
The NLC is planning to fight other corporations whose contractors abuse workers and violate labor standards, including shoe manufacturers Reebok and Nike and retailer J.C. Penney.
"Right now, we are determining our next target", said Kernaghan.
To get involved, write the
National Labor Committee
15 Union Square West New York
NY 10003. Or call 2121242 0700.
Contact
UNITE
710 Broadway
New York NY 10019
