The Student Labor Action Coalition sent Chancellor John Wiley an open letter of protest and a mock final exam Sunday, encouraging him to take further action for apparel workers in El Salvador.
In the letter sent to the chancellor, SLAC members criticized the lack of action taken by the chancellor to remedy the issues facing 63 allegedly blacklisted former workers of the Hermosa Manufacturing factory in El Salvador. Workers at Hermosa produced apparel for Adidas, an official licensee of the university.
The Chancellor's inaction is insulting and disgraceful, and we're ashamed to be students at a university that so callously ignores its students and workers,"" SLAC member Jan Van Tol said in a statement.
The group also sent Wiley a mock final exam featuring a series of true-or-false questions about acceptable labor practices, as well as an exam question asking for an explanation of what steps will be taken to assist the former Hermosa workers.
John Lucas, a university communications spokesperson, said UW-Madison is more proactive in fighting sweatshop labor than other universities.
""Other schools, including recently UNC and Penn State, are still struggling with the issue of the Designated Suppliers Program, which we signed on to several years ago.""
Lucas also said the chancellor admires SLAC's dedication to fair labor practices.
""Though they have different tactics, everyone shares the same goal - o - oimproved conditions for workers producing licensed apparel.
