More Press and Fact of the Day 3/16/07

USAS sent out a press release yesterday detailing our position on cutting the contract and as a response to the Chancellor's statement. There will be another story on Wisconsin Public Radio this afternoon.

Here are press links from the USAS press release:

UW Daily Cardinal:
http://www.dailycardinal.com/news/slac-wary-of-uw-s-adidas-investigation.html

And More From Yesterday 3.15.07:

Wisconsin Public Radio: (scroll down to "UW Checks On Worker Rights in Apparel Factory" and click on "Listen top this now...")
http://www.wpr.org/news/newsstories.cfm

Fact of the Day
In response to the University's trip to El Salvador to investigate what they call "claims," we will be delivering facts to the Chancellor everyday, so that he literally has the information at his fingertips. Though the material breach in the UW/adidas contract occurred in the Hermosa factory in El Salvador, the facts of the day will not solely cover the Hermosa case, because there have been numerous code of conduct violations by adidas at other factories which the University should take into account when considering their relationship with adidas.

Here is today's fact:

Workers from the Hermosa factory in El Salvador are owed $825,000. This has been confirmed by both the Workers Rights Consortium and the Fair Labor Association.

Workers Rights Consortium Report:

“The Hermosa factory closed in May 2005 without having paid workers legally mandated severance and back wages. At the time of the closure, there were roughly 260 workers employed at the plant. It has been estimated that the total sum owed to all workers for severance, unpaid salaries, and unpaid benefits is roughly $825,000.

Information available on the amounts owed to workers is most precise with respect to a group of 63 workers who, as part of various efforts to secure unpaid compensation, sought representation by a respected Salvadoran labor lawyer and pressed for criminal charges against their former employer.4 The workers’ legal counsel, Zoraida Rodríguez, has developed detailed information on the compensation owed to each of the 63 workers. According to this data, the workers are owed, in total, $114,926.52 in unpaid compensation and benefits (including back wages, production bonuses, accumulated vacation, accumulated sick leave, and annual bonuses) and $49,650.55 in unpaid severance. On average, the workers are owed $2,612.33 each, with individual totals ranging from $1,568.20 to $6,045.70,” Update on Hermosa/Chi Fung, Workers Rights Consortium, October 10, 2006.

Fair Labor Association Report:

“The factory’s owner, Salvador Montalvo Machado, failed to make legally required payments to the social security and retirement funds of workers, although the owner did report the owed amounts to the appropriate government agencies.

During late 2004 and early 2005, workers were asked to work Sundays in order to complete production for FLA and non-FLA companies and were not paid for overtime work. They protested to the owner but did not get paid.

The factory had no fund, accrual of money, or identified assets in its accounts to cover severance payments. The factory owed approximately $750,000 to the bank that held the mortgage on the property and $150,000 to a bank for machinery. Total worker compensation due, including unpaid benefits, unpaid salaries, and severance, is estimated at $825,000,” Interim Summary Report Third Party Complaint Regarding Hermosa Manufacturing, El Salvador, Fair Labor Association, August 25, 2006.