April 20, 2006
Revised April 25, 2006
Revised April 26, 2006
Revised April 27, 2006
Prepared by: Paul Tabolt, Vice Chancellor for Administration, University of Colorado at Boulder
This document has been revised to reflect revisions stemming from discussions held by myself and Chancellor DiStefano with members of the Coalition Against Sweatshop Abuses (CASA). This document reflects agreements realized as of the evening of April 25, 2006. CASA is now seeking additional revisions to this document.
For five years, the University of Colorado at Boulder has been actively engaged in efforts to improve working conditions for those involved in the production of licensed apparel bearing the University of Colorado聮s name, marks and logo. The University requires all licensees that have a contract with the University to adhere to ethical business practices when manufacturing or contracting for the production of licensed apparel.
The University also requires licensees to adhere to a code of conduct that calls for safe and humane working conditions and fair wages. Licensees are expected to conduct business with honesty, integrity, trustworthiness, and respect for the intrinsic value of each human being. CU-Boulder recognizes the current enforcement of the code of conduct can and should be enhanced.
A Designated Supplier Program (DSP) was proposed by the national United Students Against Sweatshops in October 2005. The CU-Boulder Licensing Advisory Committee, chaired by Professor of History William Wei, subsequently participated in national and regional conferences and teleconferences on this matter.
The Licensing Advisory Committee, which is made up of faculty, student and staff representatives from the three University of Colorado campuses, has reviewed a plethora of materials related to this matter and submitted a formal recommendation to the University on April 18, 2006. The Licensing Advisory Committee聮s chief recommendation is that the University express qualified support for the DSP. The recommendation is available at:
CU-Boulder has worked with a student group called the Coalition Against Sweatshop Abuses to revise its April 20, 2006 recommendation to help bring about an effective, workable and fair DSP.
The CU-Boulder campus stands behind the following standards to be upheld in the factories that manufacture CU licensed apparel:
1. Adherence to the CU-Boulder code of conduct
2. Collegiate licensed apparel factory workers have the choice and ability to be legitimately represented in negotiations with their employers.
3. Factory workers have the choice and ability to negotiate a wage that meets their basic needs.
4. Selection and verification of factories for the DSP shall be conducted by a balanced body that reflects the interests of the apparel industry, licensees, labor and higher education.
The University of Colorado at Boulder is committed to a good faith effort of participating in a Working Group comprised of institutions of higher education that support the DSP with the understanding that several issues have been identified that require additional attention. We intend to participate with the DSP Working Group with a goal to fully develop an implementation plan in accordance with the Working Group聮s schedule, with an expectation that the implementation plan be completed by the end of the calendar year. This plan, aimed to uphold the standards outlined above, will then be considered for approval by the University.
ISSUES NEEDING ATTENTION
CU-Boulder has identified several issues that require further discussion and refinement that we feel would make the DSP more attractive to the University of Colorado and possibly other institutions of higher education. Those issues include:
聲 CU-Boulder would like to bring a student representative to Working Group meetings.
聲 A favorable Business Review of the DSP from the Department of Justice can help alleviate our on-going concern and the concerns we have heard expressed from others in the higher education community about possible anti-trust violations.
聲 Pursue ways to bring representatives from the Workers Rights Consortium, the Fair Labor Association, factories, licensees, workers, and higher education together to design the final details of the DSP.
聲 Ensure an inclusive process is put in place for the determination of which factories are to be included in the DSP. We expect a stronger commitment to better working conditions if representatives from the Worker Rights Consortium, the Fair Labor Association, licensees, and campus licensing directors are all engaged in the identification and selection of factories that demonstrate a clear commitment to improved working conditions and fair wages.
聲 Recognize that workers should have the choice and ability to be legitimately represented in negotiations with their factory employers. CU Boulder interprets the DSP as proposing that factory employees must be represented by a legitimate, representative labor union or other representative employee body as evidenced by a collective bargaining agreement. The University wants to ensure personal choice is preserved in the criteria used to select factories.
聲 The University promotes wages and benefits which comply with all applicable laws and regulations where the work is being performed or the local prevailing wage and benefits provided by the relevant industry, whichever is higher. We also agree that factory workers should have the choice and ability to negotiate a wage that meets their basic needs. For five years, the University has sought clear definitions of what constitutes a living wage. The ambiguity of the term 聯living wage聰 and the suggestion that the Worker Rights Consortium will solely determine a living wage as a means to resolve labor disputes clearly needs to be discussed and addressed to be more inclusive of the interests of factories, licensees, labor and higher education if the DSP is to be adopted by CU-Boulder in its final form.
聲 Maintain a steadfast and long-term relationship with monitoring organizations that are committed to upholding the standards above by assessing and monitoring the results of the DSP with a commitment to revise the program when needed.
聲 Monitor retail price increases for licensed collegiate apparel. The University is interested in a DSP where apparel cost increases remain within the Worker Rights Consortium聮s retail price increase estimates of 1-6% when compared to non-collegiate apparel prices.
聲 Establish a relationship between the timeline and the percentage of goods that are to be manufactured in the DSP that allows adequate time for an analysis of the impacts the program聮s implementation is having on workers, factories, licensees and the retail market. We believe it is important that the DSP allow adequate time to revise and modify the program as lessons are learned.
聲 Provide assurances to public institutions that the DSP will be in compliance with applicable state laws, including right-to-work laws.