Chancellor John Wiley has yet to sign a resolution improving the working conditions for sweatshop laborers manufacturing University of Wisconsin apparel.
The Student Labor Action Coalition and Associated Students of Madison sent a 'Sweat-free Clothing Resolution' to Wiley Oct. 18. The resolution asked him to require licensees such as Adidas and Reebok to source 25 percent of apparel production from factories where there is a legitimate worker's union. SLAC hopes to increase that percentage to 50 percent next year and to 75 percent in 2007.
According to SLAC member and UW-Madison senior Liana Dalton, UW-Madison's monopoly over its logos gives it leverage over these suppliers. In the global market, these corporations usually flock to factories providing the cheapest labor.
'We're going to undermine that dynamic and turn it on its head and say, 'No. The brands have to pay enough so that it will pass down to the workers through collective bargaining negotiations,'' Dalton said.
UW-Madison's Labor Licensing Policy Committee has unanimously approved the resolution, but Wiley's recent trip to South Africa has prevented him from responding to the recommendation. LLPC member and UW-Madison rural sociology and women's studies professor Jane Collins said the customer would pay a minimal cost for improved working conditions. According to Collins, a 20-cent increase in the price of a sweatshirt can double what the worker will receive.
SLAC has allied with 65 other college campuses in a nationwide organization called United Students Against Sweatshops. The collective action of these campuses will send a message to corporations exploiting cheap labor, according to Collins.
'I think of it more as creating a model for ethical production than having a major impact in its own right,' Collins said.
Dalton said she thinks Wiley is ignoring the issue to please corporate alumni donating to the university. Collins suggested the resolution could also anger the corporations forced to pay higher labor costs.
'They might say, 'Well, it's not worth it to us. We'll just stop producing Badger apparel.' I don't think that's realistic,' Collins said. 'This is something that's in the public eye and they'll feel a certain amount of pressure.'
Dawn Crim, interim special assistant to the chancellor, said the Chancellor's Office is still examining the proposal's legality, feasibility and its effect on sweatshop workers.
'Right now, we are at a point where people are simply saying you should,' Crim said. 'We're looking for the reasoning.'
