Advocacy - 2012 Highlights | maquilasolidarity.org

June 27, 2013

MSN facilitates dialogue between our southern partners and international brands in order to push the brands to find solutions to systemic problems in their supplier factories.

Some 2012 highlights:

In collaboration with US counterparts, MSN worked with the CGT (General Workers’ Confederation) in San Pedro Sula, Honduras to lobby Nike and adidas to carry out an investigation into freedom of association violations at their Pinehurst supplier factory. The investigation resulted in the employer recognizing the union supported by the majority of the workers and in negotiating a first collective bargaining agreement with that union.
MSN initiated a special research and networking project on wage issues in the Central American maquila sector, in collaboration with the independent monitoring groups in Guatemala (COVERCO), Honduras (EMIH), and Nicaragua (PASE) and a researcher in El Salvador. The team is working on a joint study comparing legal minimum wage and compensation levels and basic needs wage levels in the four countries. This study, which will be published in 2013, will be a useful tool both for national minimum wage negotiations and for increased regional coordination on wage demands, as well as to lobby the brands on the living wage issue.

MSN helped to facilitate dialogue between the Salvadoran women’s group Mujeres Transformando (MT), the Fair Labor Association (FLA) and several of its member companies concerning worker rights violations at the Olocuilta Apparel (formerly Ocean Sky) garment factory in El Salvador. In addition to achieving some improvements in treatment of women workers by supervisors, MT was able to negotiate the right to carry out labour rights training for workers at the factory. In August, MT carried out a pilot training workshop with 50 sewing machine operators, followed by a training session for 200 workers in October.

MSN lobbied Canadian T-shirt manufacturer Gildan Activewear and the FLA to ensure that workers’ associational rights are respected at Gildan’s textile factory in the Dominican Republic and that Gildan negotiate in good faith for a first collective bargaining agreement with the union of the workers’ choice.

In Honduras, MSN lobbied Gildan to ensure that threats of violence against union members at its recently acquired Star factory in Honduras cease immediately and that the company provide assurances to Star workers that their factory will not be closed because of the existence of a union.