Protestors Deem Code of Labor Standards Inadequate

Harvard students rallied outside Widener Library yesterday afternoon to protest a code of conduct aimed at protecting sweatshop workers, saying the code would not establish adequate labor standards for university-licensed products.

The College Licensing Company, which licenses apparel for 160 schools, released the code as a guide for companies that make officially licensed apparel.

Protestors objected that the code does not require licensees to pay a living wage or to inform universities where its products are made.

"The codes that have been adapted only require companies to pay the minimum wage, which is often appallingly low and often forces the worker to choose between food and clothing," said Daniel M. Hennefeld '99, a member of the Progressive Student Labor Movement (PSLM) steering committee.

PSLM, an activist group within the Phillips Brooks House Association, promotes social and economic justice and supports organized labor.

Harvard is not a client of the licensing company, but students rallied to support the schools that are clients, Hennefeld said. Members of United Students Against Sweatshops, a nationwide coalition with members on 50 campuses, are also protesting the code.

Hennefeld said about 20 PSLM members attended the 1 p.m. rally. They handed out leaflets and chanted "no sweat" to protest sweatshops, "living wage" to call for a wage high enough for workers to pay for basic needs, and "full disclosure" for the full disclosure of information about the factories.

Students at other schools have been holding demonstrations for the past several weeks and will continue to demonstrate in January, he said.

Yesterday's rally is the latest in a series of on-campus anti-sweatshop protests. In October, PSLM rallied for full disclosure. In April, more than 100 students gathered to call attention to sweatshop conditions in factories manufacturing Harvard insignia clothing.

Hennefeld said the purpose of the rally was to alert students and to keep public pressure on administrators at Harvard and other college campuses.

"Pretty much any university that does licensing, they license to use at least some sweatshops in Third World countries," he said. He said he thinks Harvard administrators want to do the right thing but are hesitant about publicly committing to the principles.

University officials could not be reached for comment yesterday.