Primary links

WELCOME TO THE ARCHIVE (1994-2014) OF THE MAQUILA SOLIDARITY NETWORK. For current information on our ongoing work on the living wage, women's labour rights, freedom of association, corporate accountability and Bangladesh fire and safety, please visit our new website, launched in October, 2015: www.maquilasolidarity.org

Newsletters

June 3, 2014

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 19.1 (June 2014)

In this issue:

Editorial | Cambodian garment workers continue to mobilize despite government repression | Rana Plaza one year later: Will brands deliver on promise to help improve Cambodian worker's wages? | Women's and labour organizations launch Women's Agenda for Maquila Industry | Wage theft in Mexico: the cost of an unpaid lunch break

Download Update 19.1 here.

November 5, 2013

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 18.2 (November 2013)

In this issue:

Editorial | Six Months after Rana Plaza: Workers still waiting for compensation | Poverty wages behind mass faintings in Cambodian garment factories | Protection contracts wide spread in Mexico's electronics sector  | Living Wage: a worker's right

Download Update 18.2 here.

June 20, 2013

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 18.1 (July 2013)

In this issue:

Editorial: How many more deaths? | Global brands sign historic fire and building safety accord | Women, brands and labour rights | Poverty wages: the excuses are running out  | FLA fails to act on CODEMUH complaints | Apparel brands challenge short-term contracting in Peru | Remembering Stephen Coats

Download Update 18.1 here.

November 14, 2012

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 17.3 (December 2012)

In this issue:

Editorial: Public pressure or constructive engagement? | Gap pulls out of Bangladesh fire safety program | Pakistan’s fire tragedy | Honduras: Star management encourages threats of violence against union supporters | Haiti: We had to build a workers’ movement: An interview with Yannick Etienne | Acuña, Mexico: Fraud and harassment taint union representation vote | Shifting alliances in the Mexican labour law debate

Download Update 17.3 here.

September 6, 2012

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 17.2 (September 2012)

In this issue:

Editorial: Apple investigation update re-ignites controversy | Violence forces the CAT to close Puebla office | FLA investigation ignores root causes of workplace injuries | Should brands be liable when factories close? Adidas faces an Indonesian impasse | Can National Competitiveness Strategies Include Decent Work? | Pressure mounts on Bangladeshi authorities to solve murder of labour activist

Download Update 17.2 here.

April 19, 2012

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 17.1 (April 2012)

In this issue:

Controversy surrounds Foxconn investigation; A groundbreaking deal opens Bangladeshi garment factories to safety inspections; Auto parts company admits signing a protection contract to keep out an independent union; Despite record profits, Johnson Controls to close unionized factory; Mass faintings: A Cambodian tribunal examines the effects of poverty wages on garment workers; Precarious work: A growing campaign to change the law on short-term contracts in Peru; Bangladeshi labour organizer murdered.

Download Update 17.1 here.

November 16, 2011

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 16.3 (December 2011)

In this issue:

Mexican human rights defenders threatened for supporting laid-off workers; Haiti's apparel industry jobs are welcome, but what about the right to form unions?;  Advances and setbacks: Advances in worker rights are possible even in this economic climate; Are sportswear brands committing to ending precarious work?; High-fashion brands like Versace are joining the international ban on sandblasting.

Download Update 16.3 here.

September 1, 2011

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 16.2 (September 2011)

In this issue:

Mexican industry spokesperson puts labour rights defenders at risk; Indonesia: Groundbreaking agreement on union rights results from Play Fair initiative; Mexico: a Levi’s factory shines light on protection contracts; El Salvador: Despite training, worker rights abuses still occurring at Ocean Sky factory; Honduras: a hard-won agreement solidifies gains for Russell Athletic workers; Monitoring organization attacked in Dominican Republic.

Download Update 16.2 here.

March 1, 2011

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 16.1 (March 2011)

In this issue:

Violence, economic crisis and women workers’ rights in Juarez; Global action in solidarity with Mexican workers; Hong Kong students find new ways to advance worker rights in China; Mexico: An industry’s decline leaves Tehuacan workers in a precarious situation; Bangladesh factory fires mirror the last century’s disasters.

Download Update 16.1 here.

November 10, 2010

Maquila Solidarity Update Vol. 15.3 (December 2010)

In this issue:

Cambodia: Workers strike for a living wage; Health workshop paints dire picture of workplace injuries; IT’s my life: Electronics workers protest chronic health threats; Advances and setbacks in the fight for worker rights; Asia-Latina Exchange: Women labour rights activists reconnect in Nicaragua; Ban on sandblasting: A step in the right direction, but is it enough?.

Download Update 15.3 here.