International Labor Rights Forum

Sweatfree Communities

English

DigitalCommons@ILR

Sweatshop-free Shopping Gains Momentum 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
November 23, 2005 
Contacts: 
· Alejandra Domenzain, Sweatshop Watch, Los Angeles, CA, 213-748-5945 
· Bjorn Claeson, SweatFree Communities, Bangor, ME, 207-262-7277 
· Allie Robbins, United Students Against Sweatshops, Washington, D.C., 202-NO-SWEAT 
Shoppers have more sweat-free options this holiday season than ever before. One year after the 
historic launching of the “Shop with a Conscience” sweat-free purchasing guide, the list of 
sweat-free retailers has grown to eleven, up from eight last year. All retailers on the list sell 
clothes made by workers represented by a democratic union or a worker-owned cooperative. 
Featuring a variety of apparel from overalls to yoga pants, from T-shirts to camisoles, and even 
underwear, the guide is a resource for consumers who want quality apparel at fair prices that is 
also sweatshop-free. 
“For people who have scoffed at the viability of sweat-free producers, the growth of this list is 
proving them wrong. In fact, the guide is one of the most popular pages on our website. This 
year, consumers can build the momentum of the anti-sweatshop movement while shopping for 
the holidays,” says Alejandra Domenzain of Sweatshop Watch. 
For years, anti-sweatshop organizations have supported worker-led campaigns demanding that 
retailers take responsibility for ending sweatshop abuses in the garment industry. Many of these 
struggles have resulted in unionization or worker-owned cooperatives, where workers share 
ownership of the factory. “The places listed on this sweat-free guide came out of the brave 
resistance of workers demanding to be treated with dignity and respect,” says Bjorn Claeson of 
SweatFree Communities. “Every sweat-free purchase helps workers maintain the good wages 
and working conditions they have achieved through hard work and long struggle.” 
Fuerza Unida, a sewing cooperative in San Antonio, Texas, was formed in 1990, after Levi 
Strauss & Co. unexpectedly announced it was closing its Zarzamora Street factory. Laid-off 
workers decided to form the cooperative, which today makes quality tote bags, pillows, and 
bedding. According to co-founder Viola Casares, “Co-ops are necessary here in the U.S. because 
we are losing so many jobs,” referring to the impact of NAFTA and resulting job loss in garment 
manufacturing in the U.S. She adds, “Major retailers don’t care how the clothes are made or who 
gets hurt.” 
No Sweat Apparel, also in the sweat-free guide, sources its T-shirts from Just Garments, the first 
unionized garment factory in El Salvador. According to Just Garments worker, Christi, “Here it 
is very different. Oh yes. Here they don’t pressure us so much, they pay our benefits, they don’t 
insult us…we’re making constant progress.” 
Justice Clothing, the union-made clothing retailer, sources from Kenneth Gordon, a shirt-making 
factory in New Orleans. After Hurricane Katrina hit, the factory was forced to close, but has kept 
all its union employees on the payroll during the factory’s reconstruction. The company is 
committed to reopening with full staffing as soon as possible. 
“These sweat-free companies operate in a completely different way than large multinational 
retailers. In an industry characterized by flagrant abuses, including substandard wages, extremely 
long working hours with no overtime pay, locked bathrooms, factory closure without notice, and 
employer abuse, buying from a sweat-free retailer is another way for consumers to say no to 
sweatshop exploitation,” says Allie Robbins of United Students Against Sweatshops. 
The anti-sweatshop network that created the “Shop with a Conscience” guide includes 
Sweatshop Watch, SweatFree Communities, International Labor Rights Fund, United Students 
Against Sweatshops, and Peace through Interamerican Community Action (PICA). The guide 
has been updated for the 2005 shopping season and can be accessed online at 
http://www.sweatfree.org/shopping. 
 


Sweat-free shopping gains momentum

https://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2310&amp;context=globaldocs

Sweat-free shopping gains momentum

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

DigitalCommons@ILR