Text: HR00123 Text: HR00125 Text: HR00100 - HR00199 Text: HR Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN
1 1 HOUSE RESOLUTION NO.
1 2 BY FALLON
1 3 A Resolution urging the University of Iowa to immedi-
1 4 ately withdraw from the fair labor association.
1 5 WHEREAS, sweatshops are workplaces in which people
1 6 work in hazardous and substandard conditions, in
1 7 situations which may include subminimum wages or
1 8 nonpayment of wages, forced overtime, sexual
1 9 harassment, verbal abuse, corporal punishment, child
1 10 labor, forced birth control and pregnancy tests,
1 11 illegal firings, and prohibitions of unions; and
1 12 WHEREAS, sweatshop conditions have been documented
1 13 in the production of university-licensed apparel,
1 14 including that of the University of Iowa; and
1 15 WHEREAS, the University of Iowa is a public
1 16 institution with a strong commitment to human rights,
1 17 education, and research, partially funded by the
1 18 citizens of Iowa, which joined the Fair Labor
1 19 Association (FLA) June 15, 1999, as its initial
1 20 gesture toward combating sweatshop labor; and
1 21 WHEREAS, serious allegations have arisen regarding
1 22 conflicts of interests within the FLA and the
1 23 domination of its board of directors by apparel
1 24 corporations and by individuals and organizations that
1 25 receive funding from corporations which profit from
1 26 sweatshop labor; and
1 27 WHEREAS, due to the failure or inability of the FLA
1 28 to require adequate safeguards, independent monitoring
1 29 of or disclosure by apparel manufacturers, the
1 30 University of Iowa Center for Human Rights and the
2 1 University of Iowa Committee on Human Rights have
2 2 recommended that the University of Iowa immediately
2 3 withdraw from the FLA; and
2 4 WHEREAS, the University of Iowa has recently joined
2 5 the Workers Rights Consortium, which has a stronger
2 6 code of conduct than does the FLA, provides
2 7 independent monitoring of manufacturers, has the same
2 8 annual membership cost to the University as the FLA,
2 9 making the continued membership in the FLA a
2 10 financially redundant investment in an ineffectual
2 11 organization; and
2 12 WHEREAS, the University of Iowa's continued
2 13 affiliation with the FLA undermines its commitment to
2 14 reforming the collegiate apparel industry by
2 15 supporting an organization comprised of apparel
2 16 manufacturers and their supporters, organizations
2 17 which created, perpetuate, and profit from sweatshop
2 18 labor; NOW THEREFORE,
2 19 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
2 20 That the House of Representatives strongly urges the
2 21 administration of the University of Iowa to cancel its
2 22 membership in the Fair Labor Association and withdraw
2 23 its support from the Fair Labor Association, thus
2 24 confirming the integrity and moral leadership expected
2 25 of the University of Iowa by students, faculty,
2 26 alumni, and the citizens of Iowa.
2 27 LSB 7323HH 78
2 28 vl/gg/8
Text: HR00123 Text: HR00125 Text: HR00100 - HR00199 Text: HR Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
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