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Media Highlights
[The Straits Times] Coronavirus Retrenchments Accelerate in Indonesia’s Textile Sector
David Welsh, Southeast Asia country director of the Solidarity Center, said: "With the enormous profit margins [brands] have enjoyed on the backs of workers in Southeast Asia, they are easily placed to sustain workers and factories over this period."
[The Straits Times] Indonesia’s Labor Laws Discourage Investment and Leave Workers Worse Off: Experts
Even so, David Welsh, country director of Southeast Asia of the Solidarity Center, a nonprofit aligned with the U.S.-based labor federation AFL-CIO, said the reforms, in the garment sector at least, risk amounting to a “race to the bottom”–slashing benefits to appease big international brands that can afford to pay. During the three months ended August–the most recent data available–Sweden’s H&M, which has manufacturing facilities in Indonesia, reported a gross profit margin of 50 percent before tax.
[IndustriAll] Gender Violence Study in Brazilian Garment Factories Provides a ‘Wake-up Call to Action’
The vast majority of Brazilian textile and shoe factory workers who took part in a recent study say they have experienced some form of violence at work, often gender-based violence and harassment—to the extent that “for many women, work is synonymous with suffering,” writes the Solidarity Center’s Tula Connell.
[In These Times] 10 Years Ago, We Pledged to Help Haiti Rebuild. Then What Happened?
Haitians who do the physically demanding and repetitive work of sewing and assembling clothing in the new industrial park earn the Haitian minimum wage of just 500 gourdes (about $5.25) a day—three times less than the estimated cost of living in Haiti, according to the Solidarity Center.
[The Diplomat] Can Malaysia Solve Its Big Migrant Worker Challenge?
Dave Welsh, country director for labor rights group Solidarity Center, said that historically, migrant workers in Malaysia were initially operating outside “the purview of what were very bad labor laws” which were harshly enforced. Malaysia’s laws, he added, were “very transparent and completely, deliberately almost proudly out of whack with any international labor law norms, and applied vigorously.”
[The Article] From the Gallows to Labor Laws, Malaysia Is Rewriting the Rule Book
In the works is a radical overhaul of labor laws, which will redefine the lives of more than six million impoverished migrant workers. “The conditions [in Malaysia] are appalling,” said the Solidarity Center’s Dave Welsh. “If even a modicum of what trade unions put forward is enacted into law, this is a huge game changer.”
[Reuters] Thai Electronics Firm Compensates Exploited Workers in Rare Award
“Companies also need to do more to ensure workers never pay [recruitment] fees in the first place,” said Neha Misra from the Solidarity Center regarding a rare award reimbursing at least 10,000 Burmese migrants for the excessive and illegal fees they were charged to secure jobs at an electronics manufacturer in Thailand.
[Free Malaysia Today] Refugees Mustn’t Be Prevented from Earning a Decent Living, Say NGOs
“The assumption is that once you’re granted refugee status, you’re going to be in the country for some time. As a result, you should not be denied from earning a living,” said David Welsh, Solidarity Center director for Southeast Asia programs.
[Reuters] U.S. Blocks Import of Goods from Five Nations in Rare Anti-slavery Crackdown
The United States has blocked the import of goods suspected to have been made with forced labor from five countries. Neha Misra, senior specialist in migration and human trafficking for advocacy group Solidarity Center, welcomed the “significant step” and said economic pressure could boost the drive for full labor rights for workers in global supply chains. Blocked imports include: clothing from China, diamonds from Zimbabwe, rubber gloves made in Malaysia, gold mined in the DRC and bone black–charred animal bones–manufactured in Brazil.
Interview with Solidarity Center Executive Director Shawna Bader-Blau [Radio]
A discussion on WPFW 89.3 about a landmark pact addressing gender-based violence at garment factories in Lesotho–the first-ever binding negotiated agreement by workers, employers and clothing brands to mandate education and awareness trainings for all employees and managers, an independent reporting and monitoring system and remedies for abusive behavior.
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Media Mentions is a daily digest of major media coverage of issues that affect workers, workers’ rights, and workers’ organizations overseas, discusses the impact of globalization, or mentions the work of the Solidarity Center.