A US student group will today launch an anti-sweatshop campaign to press universities to adopt stricter standards for their campus apparel. The move shows growing momentum for the student movement calling for better working conditions in clothing factories abroad. The student organisation wants universities to drop suppliers that do not comply with their new standards.
Many universities are sympathetic to their demands.
The University of Michigan earlier this year adopted a stringent code of conduct for suppliers of apparel bearing its logo. Sportswear makers are concerned about the movement, since selling to universities is big business for them. The USAS will also release today a report on wage exploitation in El Salvador. Student groups feel those guidelines are too loose and have made little difference in the lives of overseas factory workers. Universities and most people want openness.