Sweatshop opponents praise some companies, like Liz Claiborne, for improving conditions, while accusing others, like Wal-Mart, of being slow to ensure changes at the overseas factories that produce their apparel. A number of companies that produce globally are watching much more carefully to deal with problems before they become embarrassing public problems. The movement, one of the nation's largest to push for changes since the 1960's, includes church and consumer groups, labor unions, human rights organizations and college, high school and even middle-school students. At last month's protests in Seattle, conditions in such factories were a major focus, with many demonstrators demanding that trade treaties punish countries that permit violations of minimum labor standards. Apparel industry executives say that with shoppers hunting for bargains, they face intense pressure to produce goods as cheaply as possible, encouraging many to turn to substandard factories.
Many corporate executives acknowledge that the anti-sweatshop movement's efforts are paying off.
Phil Knight, chairman of Nike, the world's largest footwear maker, said the movement had gotten his company to accelerate efforts to improve conditions. Basically the workers in footwear factories, not just our factories, are better off today than two years ago. Labor rights experts point to many improvements. Five years ago, monitoring groups say, apparel factories in Honduras often employed children under 14, but now it is rare to find workers under 16. In Indonesia, managers no longer systematically squash unionization efforts.