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U.S. student activists announce new labor rights organization

Following the recent success of Nike's disclosure of 41 factory locations, the United Students Against Sweatshops released a Workers Rights Consortium yesterday, but UA's chapter has not yet committed to the mandates.

The WRC will be an alternative monitoring organization that USAS hopes will replace the Fair Labor Association, created after the outbreak of the Kathy Lee Gifford sweatshop scandal.

"We've had enough of the FLA's support for secrecy in the industry." said Jess Champagne, member of USAS Coordinating Committee. "Closed doors only hide sweatshops."

The FLA is a government agency that has not yet begun its monitoring of corporations that may use sweatshop labor.

"The FLA leaves too much room for corporations and in a sense turns their back on the problem," history senior and SAS member Corey Mattson said.

At a press conference yesterday in New York City, the USAS announced that today would be the beginning of the "largest ever campus campaign."

Today has been declared a "day of action" by the USAS, which is planning a new campaign at 30 campuses nationwide that will be marked by demonstrations and passing out leaflets.

The University of Arizona's Students Against Sweatshops chapter has organized a rally that will begin at 9:45 this morning with street theater and signs that warn students that they are "entering a corporate area."

The SAS has not formally adopted the two student mandates set out by the USAS' consortium.

The USAS release states that all universities must "endorse and join the student developed Worker Rights Consortium." It also demands that universities "either withdraw from or refuse to join the Fair Labor Association."

The student activist group members hope the WRC will replace the government agency, and eventually monitor university-affiliated labor rights.

The UA chapter of the student group hasn't had a chance to read and determine whether to support the USAS in this move.

"We aren't in a position to say that we support the WRC," said Tim Bartley, sociology graduate student and SAS member.

While the focus of yesterday's press conference was the anti-sweatshop movement, the UA rally was organized independent from the announcement of the WRC. The activity will focus on corporate involvement in universities.

"It is important for us to call attention to how the corporate world has infiltrated the academic and while our organization was formed to bring attention to sweatshops, this problem is also important," Bentley said.

The SAS members don't know when they will take a stance on the two mandates set out by the USAS and plan to continue with their current campaign to create a better sense of awareness on UA's campus.