December, 2005
Dear Friends,
Ain’t I A Woman?! is pleased to announce a huge victory against
Street Beat Sportswear and thank you for your past support.
In 1998, a group of Cantonese garment workers sued Street Beat
Sportswear, the manufacturer responsible for their 137 hour work-weeks
at piece-rate wages below minimum wage without overtime pay. The
heated campaign successfully pressured retailers such as Sears
and Fashion Bug to stop selling Street Beat clothing. In 2000,
the workers won a large settlement, and they also encouraged a
second group of Fuzhounese workers to come out against the notorious
sweatshop manufacturer. The second group of workers labored over
140 hours a week under similar conditions. Their case dragged
on through the legal system for nearly 5 years, waiting for a
decision in a separate case against Liberty Apparel to establish
a precedent for manufacturer accountability. We are happy to let
you know that Street Beat Sportswear has once again settled with
the workers.
The Street Beat workers’ victory came just in time, despite
Department of Labor Secretary Elaine Chao’s neglectful behavior.
Eight months ago, Judge Leo Glasser, presiding over the case,
noted in his most recent decision that Street Beat had violated
several compliance agreements it had voluntarily signed. The agreements
declared that Street Beat would only engage in contracts that
ensured decent, lawful working conditions for its subcontracted
workers. The Department of Labor was notified of this decision
and urged to investigate the violation claims. But much like Street
Beat, Elaine Chao has a history of blatantly ignoring workers’
rights, making her a disgrace to the Asian-American community.
The struggles against Street Beat have been an important lesson
in waging a boycott, not just targeting manufacturers, but retailers
as well, to support the workers standing up against inhumane conditions.
The Street Beat case’s lead plaintiff, Ms. Chen says, “We
are happy with the settlement, but now we really need to settle
the case against Liberty Apparel.” The Street Beat settlement
has become an important step in focusing on the fight against
garment manufacturer Liberty Apparel. Holding Liberty Apparel
accountable to its workers will not only affect garment workers,
but office temps, home healthcare workers, and all subcontracted
workers. We are calling for an aggressive Boycott of Liberty Apparel
and the retailers that refuse to honor the boycott.
This Wednesday, December 14th at 12pm noon, we are calling on
Liberty Apparel to take responsibility for its mistreated workers,
and calling out the retail chain, Conway’s, for refusing
to cease selling Liberty Apparel clothing.
Please join us to:
"Boycott Liberty Apparel!!!"
Sincerely,
The Ain’t I A Woman?! Campaign
The Ain’t I A Woman?! Campaign continues fighting for manufacturer
accountability to subcontracted workers, recognizing caregiving
as work, and supporting all women workers fighting for control
of our lives.
For more info, contact the Ain't I a Woman?! Campaign at (212)
334-2333 or (718) 625-9091 or visit the campaign website at: www.aintIaWoman.org.
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