Penn State To Support Two Organizations In Its Anti-Sweatshop Efforts
December 4, 2000
University Park, Pa. -- The Penn State Advisory Committee on Apparel Manufacturing, which was established by President Graham Spanier in April to determine the best ways for Penn State to eliminate sweatshop conditions in the manufacture of its apparel, recently completed its deliberations and delivered a final report to the president.
The report recommends that the University continue its affiliation with the Fair Labor Association (FLA) and the Global Alliance for Workers and Communities. The committee recommended against joining the newly formed Worker's Rights Consortium (WRC), but urged the University to monitor the WRC's progress as it establishes its operation, in the event that a later affiliation would be appropriate.
(The report and an executive summary are available for downloading below. Both are in PDF format. You will need Acrobat Reader to view and print them)
The committee conducted 17 meetings, reviewed more than 150 documents, and heard testimony from representatives of numerous organizations, including Students for Accountability and Reform (STAR), NIKE, the FLA, the WRC, and the Global Alliance for Workers and Communities.
"Everyone on the committee, established in consultation with the Undergraduate Student Government and the Faculty Senate, agreed that the issue of sweatshop labor is an important one. The time invested in these meetings and the level of international expertise on these issues that some of our members and visitors brought to the discussion were invaluable in helping us reach the best plan," said Dan Sieminski, assistant vice president for finance and business and chair of the committee. "Penn State will continue to leverage its educational and research expertise along with our economic interest to exert pressure on this issue here in the United States and around the world."
The committee then established a set of criteria to evaluate how the various monitoring groups could best serve the University's approved manufacturing Code of Conduct. The major issue facing the committee was whether to remain affiliated with the FLA and/or join the WRC.
"The committee members felt that the FLA better satisfied the criteria that the committee had established," said Dan Sieminski. "The FLA has established leadership and staffing, and seems better positioned to fulfill the objectives that we all want -- safer and better working conditions for the people who manufacture this apparel."
Several members of the committee had urged some sort of affiliation with the WRC, but the majority of the committee felt that was premature.
"There was considerable discussion of the issue, but the consensus was not to join the WRC because they satisfied few of the criteria established by the committee," Sieminski said.
Penn State joined the FLA in March, 1999, with encouragement from student leaders, in an effort to ensure that Penn State trademark licensees were abiding by the Labor Code of Conduct. In June, 2000, Penn State also joined the Global Alliance for Workers and Communities. The University's financial commitment to the two organizations is believed to be among the largest by any university in the country.
In a letter to committee members, President Spanier made it clear that he would follow their recommendations. He praised the committee for their time and service, noting that their dedication to the task was impressive. "This committee has done an exceptional job of sorting out the important issues, reviewing all of the available information, and talking to key individuals in each organization. I have complete confidence in their recommendation."
The Advisory Committee on Apparel Manufacturing had the following membership:
-- Dan Sieminski, Chair, Assistant Vice President for Finance and Business
-- Karen Bierman, Director of the Children, Youth and Families Consortium and Distinguished Professor of Psychology
-- Phillip R. Bower, graduate student majoring in mineral processing
-- Phillip J. Burlingame, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs
-- Samantha Chirillo, undergraduate student majoring in microbiology (resigned 12/1/00)
-- James H. Dunlop, Director of Procurement and Materials Management
-- Dennis S. Gouran, Professor of Speech Communication and Labor Studies and Industrial Relations
-- Douglas Grane, undergraduate student majoring in geography
-- Janis E. Jacobs, Vice President for Administration
--Romel Sharma, undergraduate student majoring in philosophy
-- John M. Stevens, Professor of Management
A copy of the executive summary for the report is attached to this press release. The complete report may be found in the "announcements" box on the University's homepage at http://www.psu.edu.
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Contact: Steve MacCarthy (814) 863-1028 or
