Heng Rithy, a garment worker in Cambodia, says her factory has good working conditions and she can support her family because workers have a union. Credit: Solidarity Center/Shanleystudio
An estimated 450 million people work in global supply chains—in textiles, retail, fisheries, electronics, construction, tourism, transport and agriculture. Economic globalization has created benefits for consumers, business and suppliers, but the practice of sourcing goods and services from countries where wages are low and laws are lax often results in jobs that are insecure and informal, involving dangerous workplaces, forced overtime and even slavery.
The Solidarity Center works with unions, worker associations and other allies in countries throughout the global supply chain in countries such as Bangladesh, Honduras, Lesotho, Morocco and Uzbekistan to address poverty wages, dangerous and unsafe working conditions and limited rights on the job.
For instance in Lesotho, the Solidarity Center partnered with labor rights and women’s rights organizations to negotiate a worker-centered, precedent-setting program to comprehensively address the rampant gender-based violence and harassment denying thousands of women garment workers a safe and dignified workplace. The Solidarity Center is helping lead training in addressing and preventing sexual harassment and other forms of gender-based violence among 10,000 workers at five factories there.
Migrant workers comprise a large part of the global supply chain, traveling to countries such as Malaysia to work in factories and to Gulf countries as domestic workers. The Solidarity Center partners with unions such as the Central Organization of Trade Unions-Kenya and the Kuwait Trade Union Federation to advocate for policies and legislation that address the exploitation and abuse migrant workers face, and educate workers who plan to work abroad about labor laws and workplace rights in their origin and destination countries.
More than 100 worker rights lawyers from around the world will identify common challenges, share successes and plan strategic partnerships next week in Mexico City at the first International Lawyer Action Network (ILAW) conference. “The ILAW Network’s inaugural...
Dynamic women worker rights leaders from across the globe offered a vision for hope, resilience and movement toward an economy and society that works for people and the planet yesterday at the event, “Building Power: Women’s Leadership in the Fight for Justice,...
Gaspar Matalaev, a labor and human rights activist who monitored and reported on the systematic use of forced adult labor and child labor in Turkmenistan’s cotton fields, was released today after serving three years in prison on spurious charges stemming from his...
While studies have shown the prevalence of violence against women at home and in their communities, no comprehensive data exists to document the extent of gender-based violence (GBV) at work. To better understand GBV at work, 23 activists and female leaders of workers...
While studies have shown the prevalence of violence against women at home and in their communities, no comprehensive data exists to document the extent of gender-based violence (GBV) at work. To better understand GBV at work, 17 activists and female leaders of workers...
Haitian garment workers face increasing difficulty in covering basic expenditures as prices soar while wages hover far below the cost of living. Download here in Creole. Download here in English. Download here in French.
This study by the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) and Solidarity Center finds women workers in Morocco’s fertile Meknes region are making big gains in gender equality on the job through their union, the Confédération Démocratique du Travail (CDT)....
Although the government of Uzbekistan has made progress on ending child and adult forced labor in the cotton fields after more than a decade of international pressure, a new report finds that forced labor remains rampant in other arenas of Uzbek life, affecting...
This report analyzes the impact of violence in North-East Nigeria, where teachers, health care professionals and civil servants were the victimized by insurgents targeting symbols of state authority. The report includes recommendations for government and worker...