III 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 426 

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the United States should support 

and protect the right of women working in developing countries to safe 

workplaces, free from gender-based violence, reprisals, and intimidation. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 14, 2016 

Mrs. MURRAY (for herself, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. MARKEY, and Mr. BROWN) 

submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 

on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the United States 

should support and protect the right of women working 

in developing countries to safe workplaces, free from 

gender-based violence, reprisals, and intimidation. 

Whereas women in developing countries who join the industrial workforce suffer from, or become increasingly vulnerable to, economic violence, including forced overtime, 

wage theft, abusive short-term contracts, discrimination, 

sexual harassment, and violence at work; 

Whereas women typically make up the majority of the workforce in industries in which the rights of workers have 

been restricted, including— 

(1) export manufacturing (including the global apparel industry); and 


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•SRES 426 IS 

(2) other export sectors (including the cut flowers 

and fresh produce industries); 

Whereas sexual violence is often used by a male manager as 

a means of intimidation or punishment when a female 

worker makes a mistake, fails to meet a production target, asks for leave, or arrives late to work; 

Whereas women are particularly vulnerable to violence and 

intimidation at work due to— 

(1) the frequently disproportionate number of male 

managers; 

(2) the lack of policing and reporting of sexual harassment; and 

(3) common cultural norms that assert male dominance and place disproportionate pressure on women to 

maintain their income and support their children and elders; 

Whereas a survey of female garment industry workers in 

Bangladesh revealed that— 

(1) nearly 1⁄3 of respondents had been a recipient of 

an unwelcome sexual overture, inappropriate touching, or 

a threat of being forced to undress; and 

(2) nearly 1⁄2 of respondents had been beaten or 

struck in the face by a supervisor; 

Whereas some of the most deadly accidents in industrial history have occurred in export processing industries in 

which female workers predominate, including— 

(1) the fire at Ali Enterprises in Pakistan in 2012, 

the deadliest apparel factory fire in history, in which the 

lives of 259 workers were lost; and 

(2) the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in 2013, 

in which the lives of 1,134 Bangladeshi workers were lost 


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•SRES 426 IS 

and 2,500 more workers were injured, the majority of 

whom were women; 

Whereas these and other industrial accidents have occurred 

in facilities that were monitored and certified as safe and 

decent workplaces by private, voluntary corporate social 

responsibility initiatives invested in by global brands from 

the United States and Europe; 

Whereas female workers are often knowingly exposed to dangerous and life-threatening machinery or toxic substances 

that are no longer used in developed nations due to their 

reproductive or general health effects, without even simple safety measures like gloves or face masks; and 

Whereas research shows that— 

(1) workers who are well-informed about health and 

safety facilitate safer workplaces; and 

(2) legal protections that allow elected labor union 

representatives of workers to raise safety and other concerns without fear of reprisals are essential for worker 

safety: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that the 

2 United States should— 

3 (1) support policies that create safe and decent 

4 jobs in developing countries, which are critical to en5 suring peaceful and sustainable economic growth 

6 and development in a globalized world; 

7 (2) support policies that reduce gender-based 

8 violence, and other forms of discrimination, at work, 

9 and that improve the ability of women workers to 


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•SRES 426 IS 

1 speak out in defense of their rights without fear of 

2 reprisals; 

3 (3) encourage the development of an Inter4 national Labour Conference Convention to address 

5 gender-based violence at work; 

6 (4) promote labor rights in trade agreements 

7 and enforce the right of women and other workers 

8 to join a labor union to defend their other rights and 

9 safety; 

10 (5) use diplomatic means and international 

11 aid— 

12 (A) to end violence against women in the 

13 workplace; and 

14 (B) to empower women and other workers 

15 to participate fully in their economies and to 

16 protect their safety; and 

17 (6) encourage United States companies with 

18 international supply chains, and Federal agencies in19 volved in procurement, to increase transparency and 

20 accountability in order to ensure that products are 

21 produced in workplaces that— 

22 (A) work aggressively to end gender-based 

23 workplace violence; and 

24 (B) respect the rights of women workers. 

Æ 


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