The problem of sweatshops in the apparel industry is now widely known. An active consumer movement has emerged to oppose the production of apparel under sweatshop conditions. Much of the leadership and initiative for this movement has been provided by university students. Universities, which act as consumers of sports apparel and equipment, and also are major retailers of school-related apparel, have in some cases become targets of student protests. With their power as major buyers of apparel, and with a loyal consumer base, universities are in a unique position to lead in the effort to improve conditions in apparel production by insisting that producers comply with international standards on labor rights.
Universities now have a context for working to improve conditions in the apparel sector.
Critics of the FLA have noted that without meaningful NGO participation in monitoring, the process may not be able to identify and represent sensitive worker concerns. Without the participation of NGOs based in producer countries, the FLA will likely be attacked as representing only the interests of the participating companies and not of their workers. This project identified four apparel-producing countries where companies operate that supply for university licensees, and where sweatshop practices have been revealed. ILRF identified partner NGOs in each country, and with these partners, conducted an intensive and rapid training program to equip the NGOs with the background knowledge necessary to participate in the FLA and other monitoring processes. These materials will then become the operational handbooks for the FLA monitoring to be implemented on a large scale.