IV 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 710 
Honoring the Thai-American garment workers who opened the country’s eyes 
to sweatshop conditions in the United States and, against all odds, 
expanded rights for immigrant workers and survivors of human traf-
ficking while holding corporations responsible for the conditions in which 
their clothes are made. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 
Ms. CHU (for herself, Ms. JACOBS, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Ms. MENG, Ms. SCHA-
KOWSKY, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, and Ms. BARRAGA´N) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 
Workforce 
RESOLUTION 
Honoring the Thai-American garment workers who opened 
the country’s eyes to sweatshop conditions in the United 
States and, against all odds, expanded rights for immi-
grant workers and survivors of human trafficking while 
holding corporations responsible for the conditions in 
which their clothes are made. 
Whereas Thai garment workers were forced to work behind 
barbed wire and under armed guard in an apartment 
complex in El Monte, California, sewing garments for 16 
to 18 hours a day, 7 days a week under the threat of 
harm to themselves and their families in Thailand; 
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•HRES 710 IH 
Whereas the workers were trafficked into the United States, 
held against their will, had their passports taken from 
them, and were denied contact with the outside world 
until August 2, 1995, when a multiagency law enforce-
ment raid exposed their conditions of involuntary ser-
vitude; 
Whereas the workers were threatened with deportation until 
community advocates intervened and helped the workers 
find freedom, shelter, new jobs, and the chance to rebuild 
their lives in the United States; 
Whereas the workers filed a landmark lawsuit against their 
captors and against the companies they were sewing for, 
which was the first Federal lawsuit of its kind, trans-
formed the garment industry, and launched anti-sweat-
shop legislation and campaigns across the country and 
around the world that reverberate to this day; 
Whereas advocates fought for the workers to stay in the 
United States and pioneered the use of S visas, in part-
nership with Federal prosecutors, which led to the cre-
ation of T and U visas to protect workers who serve as 
material witnesses to come forward and report abuse and 
exploitation without fear of immigration-based retaliation; 
Whereas the workers have inspired countless individuals, and 
their story has been documented in books, an animated 
short, museums, including the National Museum of 
American History, and is taught in high school, college, 
and law school curricula; 
Whereas the workers freed from the El Monte sweatshop 
went on to contribute in invaluable ways to the United 
States as activists, spokespersons, small business owners, 
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health care professionals, service providers, and more; 
and 
Whereas the workers are now inducted into the United States 
Department of Labor’s Hall of Honor, taking their right-
ful place in the labor history of the United States for 
their courage, resilience, and groundbreaking efforts: 
Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) honors the Thai garment workers freed 
from the El Monte sweatshop for their courage, per-
sistence, and resilience; 
(2) recognizes the many legal, cultural, and pol-
icy changes that have resulted from the El Monte 
sweatshop case; 
(3) recognizes the individuals that continue to 
fight against forced labor and human trafficking, for 
corporate accountability, and for an end to exploita-
tive working conditions; and 
(4) respectfully requests that the Clerk of the 
House of Representatives transmit— 
(A) an enrolled copy of this resolution to 
the Director of the National Museum of Amer-
ican History; and 
(B) 5 copies of this resolution to the Sec-
retary of Labor. 
Æ 
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